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FREEMAN'S HISTORICAL COURSE FOR SCHOOLS 

HISTORY 

OF 

THE UNITED STATES 



J. A. DOYLE 



WITH MAPS ILI.USTKATIVE OF THE ACQUISITION OF TERRITORY 
AND THE liNCKEASE OF POPULATIOM 



FRANCIS A. WALKER 

Professor of History and Folitical Economy in the Sheffield Scientific 
School of Vale College 



k 




NEW YORK 

HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 

1876 



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OOPYRKJHT, l!?T(j. BT 

HKNRV HOLT. 



John F. Trow ft. Son, 

STEREOTVPERS AND PKINTERS, 

205-213 East 12/// St., 

NEW VORK. 



PUBLISHERS' NOTE. 



In addition to the Maps by Prof. Walker, in illustra- 
tion of the acquisition of territory and the increase of 
population, this work has had the benefit of some correc- 
tions from his hand as to dates and minor statements of 
fact, in respect to which a work of foreign origin miglit 
naturally be found in error. The author's judgments, 
whether literary, military, or political, as to men and 
events in our history, have been allowed to stand unal- 
tered ; and this, therefore, remains essentially an outside 
view of the United States. It is believed that such a 
work, though it may conflict at points with our national 
prepossessions, and may, in specific matters, use rules 
of criticism that we are slow to apply to our own case, 
yet enjoys a breadth of view and a freedom from partisan 
bias not easily attained by a writer at home. 

Jamiary, 1876. 



LIST OF MAPS. 

PACK. 
CHANGES IN TERRITORY I 

DISTRIBUTION OF POPULATION IN 1 79O 284 

" 1830 318 

" " " " 1870 392 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

PACK 

AMERICA: ITS GEOGRAPHY AND NATIVES .... I 



CHAPTER II. 

THE EUROPEAlSf SETTLEMENTS IN AMERICA DURING 

THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY 21 



CHAPTER III. 
VIRGINIA 40 

CHAPTER IV. . 

PLYMOUTH 60 



COA TEATS. 



CHAPTER V. 

PACE 

MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT 69 



CHAPTER VI. 
THE SMALLER NEW ENGLAND COLONIES ..... 87 

CHAPTER VII. 

THE NEW ENGLAND CONFEDERATION 92 

CHAPTER VIII. 

NEW ENGLAND FROM THE RESTORATION TO THE 

REVOLUTION OF 16S8 107 

CHAPTER IX. 
KEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION. . . . . I26 

CHAPTER X. 

MARYLAND H^ 



CONTENTS. 
CHAPTER XI. 

NEW YORK , . . . 156 



PAGB 



CHAPTER Xir. 
THE CAROLINA S 170 



CHAPTER XIII. 

IHE QUAKER COLONIES 179 



CHAPTER XIV. 

THE SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA AND THE SFANir.II 

WAR 189 



CHAPTER XV. 

THE CONQUEST OF CANADA AND OF THE OHIO VALLEY 202 



CHAPTER XVI. 

GENERAL VIEW OF THE THIRTEEN COLONIES . . . ^\^ 



viii CON'IENTS. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

PACR 

THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX 2.;4 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE 240 

CHAPTER XIX. 

THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 253 

CHAPTER XX. 

THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION 278 

CHAPTER XXI, 

THE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN 298 

CHAPTER XXII. 

SOUTH CAROLINA AND NULLIFICATION 316 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

GROWING OPPOSITION BETWEEN THE NORTH AND 

SOUTH 326 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

P.AGE 

THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY 337 



CHAPTER XXV. 

THE WAR OF SECESSION 347 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

CONCLUSION 3S6 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLK 



A.D. 

Christopher Columbus sends his brother to the English 

Court 1488 

Discovery of Hispaniola by Columbus 1492 

Patent granted to John Cabot 1493 

Eiscovery of the mainland by Sebastian Cabot .... ]497 

Cabot's second voyage 1498 

Patent granted to Ashurst and others 1501 

Vasco Nunez crosses the Isthmus of Panama 1513 

Cortez invades Mexico 15] 9 

Pizarro invades Peru 1525 

Albert de Prado sends out two ships 1527 

Cartier discovers the St. Laurence River 1534 

Here's voyage 1536 

Sebastian Cabot made Grand Pilot of Engl iud 1549 

French settlement on the coast of Florida 1562 

Frobisher's first voyage 1576 

Gilbert's first voyage 1579 

Gilbert's second voyage, and death 1583 

Raleigh sends out Amidas and Barlow 1584 

Raleigh's first colony 1585 

Raleigh's colonists come home . 1586 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 



A.D, 

Raleigh's second colony 1587 

Defeat of the Armada 1588 

GosRold's voyage to New England 1602 

Foundation of the London and Plymouth Companies . . 1606 

Settlement at Jamestown 1607 

Flight of the Scrooby Independents to Holland .... 1608 
The Virginia Company chartered ; Hudson discovers New 

Netherlands ; Foundation of Quebec 1609 

Lord Delaware arrives in Virginia 1610 

Marriage of Rolfe and Pocahontas 1613 

First Assembly held at Virginia 1619 

Formation of the second Plymouth Company, Dec. i6 ; 

Landing of the Puritans at Plymouth 1620 

Formation of the Dutch West India Company 1621 

The massacre in Virginia 1622 

Dissolution of the Virginia Company 1624 

Formation of the INIassachusetts Company ; grant of land to 

John Mason ; capture of Quebec by David Kirk ; grant 

of Maryland to the first Lord Baltimore 1629 

Emigration of Winthrop 1630 

Settlement of Maryland ; banishment of Roger Williams . . 1634 
Insurrection in Virginia ; dissolution of the Plymouth Com- 
pany ; Settlement of Connecticut 1635 

Banishment of Mrs. Hutchinson 1636 

ThePequodWar 1637 

Settlement of New Haven; Charter for Maine granted to 

Gorges 1638 

Union of New Hampshire with Massachusetts 1641 

Formation of the New England Confederation ; Death of 

Miantonomo 1643 

Patent for Providence obtained by Roger Williams . . . 1644 

Dispute between New Netherlands and New Haven . . . 1646' 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 



A.D, 

Na'r.-agaiisett War 1650 

Overthrow of the Proprietary Government in Maryland . 1654 

Quaker writings forbidden by Massachusetts 1656 

Restoration of the Proprietary Government in Maryland . . 1657 
Charters granted to Rhode Island and Connecticut ; grant ot 

Carolina to Shaftesbury and others 1663 

Commissioners sent out from England to tlie New England 
colonies ; union of New Haven aud Connecticut ; conquest 

of New Netherlands [New York] by the English . . . 1664 

Foundation of Elizabethtown in New Jersey 1665 

Grant of Virginia to Lords Culpepper and Arlington . . . 1669 
Recovery of New York by the Dutch ; insurrection in New 

Jersey ; Marquette explores the West 1673 

Restoration of New York to the English 1674 

King Philip's war 1675 

Bacon's rebellion in Virginia 1676 

Division of New Jersey into East and West ; New I lampshi'ne 

and Maine become separate coionies 1677 

InsuiTCction in North Carolina 1678 

Grant of land to William Penn 1680 

Insurrection in Maryland 1681 

Settlement of the Constitution of Pennsylvania 1682 

The Charter of Massachusetts annulled ; first Assembly in 

New York 1683 

La Salle explores the Mississippi 1684 

The New England colonies placed under a Governor and 
Council ; New York placed under a Governor ajid 

Council 1686 

Andros demands the surrender of the Charter of Connec- 
ticut ; the Five Nations invade Canada 1687 

Deposition of Governor Sothel iu North Carolina .... 1688 



CllR ONOL GICAL TA BL E. 



A.T). 
The "Leopard " and " Chesape^lce," June 22nd ; Fulton's 

steam-boat launched on the Hudaon 1807 

The Shawnee Indians defeated at Tippecanoe 1811 

War declared with England, June i8th ; invasion of Canada 1812 

"Chesapeake" and " Shannon," June 1st . . . . . . 1813 

Destruction of Washington, August 24th; peace signed at 

Ghent, December 24th 1814 

Defeat of the Britisli before New Orleans, January Slh . 1815 

Protection Bill 1816 

First Seminole War .»....,. 1817 

The Missouri Compromise 1821 I 

Deaths of Jefferson and Adams, July 4th ... . . . 1826 

Attempt to purchase Texas from Mexico 1827 

First appearance of the Mormons 1830 

Attempt at nul ification by South Carolina ; bank struggle . 1832 

Second Seminole War 1835 

Texas declares itself independent of Mexico 1836 

Departure of the Mormons to Illinois 1838 

Affair of the " Caroline " 1840 

Affair of the "Creole"; Ashburton Treaty ..... 1842 

Annexation of Texas . .... 1845 

Outbreak of Mexican War 1846 

Capture ©f the city of Mexico, September 14th ; disputes 

with Great Britain about Oregon 1847 

Gold discoveries in California, January ; Treaty of Guada- 
lupe Hidalgo, February and 1848 

Departure of the Mormons to Utah 1848 

Clay's Omnibus Bill passed, September 1851 

Missouri Compromise repealed Ia04 

Struggle in Kansas 1855 

Dred Scott case 1857 

Execution of John Brown, December 3rd 1S59 



CHROXOL GICAL TAEL E. 



A.D. 

Election of Lincoln ; South Carolina secedes, December 20th 1800 

Southern Confederacy fonrred, February 4th ; fall of Fort 
Sumter, April 13th ; Virginia joins the Southern Con- 
federacy, April 17th; Battle of Bull Run, July 21st; 
appearance of the steam-ram "Manassas," Oct. 12th; 
seizure of Messrs Mason and Slidell, November 8th . . 1861 

Capture of Fort Henry, February 6th ; capture of Fort 
Donelson, February i6th ; fight of the " Merrimac " and 
" Monitor," March 7th ; Battle of Shiloh, April 7th ; cap- 
ture of New Orleans, April 25th ; Battle of Fair Oaks, 
May 31st ; Battle of Antietam, September 17th ; Battle of 
Fredericksburg, December 13th ; Battle of Murfrees- 
boro, December 31st 1862 

Lincoln's proclamation freeing the slaves, January ist ; Battle 
of Chancellorsville, May 2nd and 3rd ; Battle of (Jettys- 
burg, July ist, 2d and 3rd ; fall of Vicksburg, July 3rd; 
riots at New York, July 13th; Battle of Chickamauga, 
September 19th and 20th; Battle of Chattanooga, No- 
vember 24th 1863 

Battle of the Wilderness, May 5th-i2th ; destruction of the 
" Alabama," June 14th ; capture of Atlanta, September 
2nd; Battle of Cedar Creek, October 19th; Battle of 
Nashville, December 15th and i6th ; capture of Savan- 
nah, December 21st 1864 

Fall of Richmond, April 3rd ; Lee's surrender, April 9th ; 
murder of Lincoln, April 14th; Johnston's surrender, 
May 26th; conditional amnesty. May 29th . , . . 1865 



LIST OF PRESIDENTS. 



LIST OF PRESIDENTS. 

* George Washington, Virgmia . * 1789-1797 

John Adams. Massachusetts 1797-1801 

" Thomas Jefferson, Viri^i Ilia 1801-1809 

* James Madison, Virginia 1809-1817 

* James Monroe, Vin^inia 1S17-1825 

John Quincy Adams, Massachuseits 1825-1829 

* Andrew Jackson, Tennessee 1829-1837 

Martin Van Buren, New York 1837-1841 

William Henry Harrison, Ohio (Died April 4th). iS^i 

t John Tyler, Virginia 1S4.1-1845 

James K. Polk, Tennessee 1S45-1849 

Zachary Taylor, Louisiana . . . (Died July 9th). 1850 

t Millard Fillmore, New York ...... 1850-1853 

Franklin Pierce, New Hampshire 1853-1S57 

James Buchanan, Pennsylvania 1857-1861 

* Abraham Lincoln, Illinois (Murdered April 14th). 1861-1865 
t Andrew Johnson, Tennessee 1865-1869 

* Re-elected. 

+ Elected vice-presidents, and succeeded to tlie Presidency through 
accidental vacancies. 

Population of the original Thirteen States in 1870. 

Connecticut 537,454 

Delaware 125,015 

Virginia 1,225,163 

New York 4,382,759 

New Hampshire 318,300 

New Jersey . . 906,096 

North Carolina 1,071, ^^b I 

South Carolina 705,606 

Maryland 780,894 

Pennsylvania 3>5-i,95i 

Georgia 1,184,109 

Rhode Island 217,353 

Massachusetts J > 45 7, 35 1 



POPULATION OF STATES. 



States admitted after the original Thu-teen States. 



Admitted as 
States. 



Population in 
1870. 



Vermont 
Kentucky . 
Tennessee . 
Ohio . . . 
Louisiana 
Indiana . 
Mississippi . 
Illinois . 
Alabama 
Maine . . 
Missouri . 
Arkansas 
Michigan 
Florida . . 
Texas 
Iowa . . 
Wisconsin . 
California 
Minnesota . 
Oregon . 
Kansas . 
West Virginia 
Nevada . 
Nebraska 



1791 
1792 
1796 
1802 
1812 
1816 
1817 
1S18 
1819 
1820 
1821 
1836 
1837 
1845 
1845 
1845 
1848 
1850 
1858 

1859 
1861 
1862 
1864 

1867 



330,551 
1,321,011 
1,258,520 
2,665,260 

726,915 
1,680,637 

827,922 
2,539,891 

996,992 

626,915 
1,721,295 

484,471 
1,184,059 

187,748 

818,579 
1,194,020 
1,054,670 

560,247 

439,706 
90,923 

364,399 

442,014 
42,491 

122,993 



Of the above States, five were formed on territory belonging in 
1789 to one or another of the Original Thirteen States : Vermont 
was taken from New York ; Kentucky and West Virginia from 
Virginia; Tennessee from North Carolina; Maine from Massa- 
clmsetts. The populations of these States, or at least of Vermont, 
Maine and West Virginia, should, for purposes of comparison, be 
added to the populations of the States from which they were sev- 
erally taken. 



HISTORY OF 

THE UNITED STATES. 

CHAPTER I. 

AMERICA : ITS GEOGRAPHY AND NATIVES. 

Geography of America (l) — two vicivs of American geography {i) — 
geography of the United States {},)— position of Avierica tinvards 
other coruitries (4) — the co 'st of America (5) — the vorihern 
coast {6)— the natives {•])— division of races {%) — the civilized races 
{Oi)—the Peruvians {10)— the Mexicam (li) — the islanders (l2) 
—the Red India7is (13). 

I. Geography of America. — Before entering upon the his- 
tory of any people, it is well to get a distinct idea of the 
land in which they dwell. This knowledge is especially need- 
ful in the case of newly settled nations like the P^uropean 
colonies in America. For there is one great point of differ- 
ence between the present inhabitants of America and the 
rest of the civilized nations of the world. Except the 
English settlers in Australia and New Zealand, they are 
the only civilized people of any importance who have 
entered into their present dwelling-place in times of which 
we have full and clear accounts. Of the great nations 
of Europe and Asia some were settled in their present 
abodes in times so early that we know r.othing certain 
s B 



2 AMERICA : ITS GEOGRAPHY. [chap, 

about them. The greater part moved in times of which we 
know something, often indeed a good deal, but of which we 
have no exact history. It is always very difficult to say how 
far the condition and character of a nation are the result of 
the physical features of the country in which it dwells, or of 
other causes which we cannot trace. But in looking at the 
present nations of America, we have this great advantage. 
We can see the countiy as it was before the inhabitants 
came to it, and we can see the inhabitants as they were 
before they came to the country. For they went there in 
times when nearly as much was known about the chief 
nations of Europe as is now. Thus we can compare the 
people as they were before they came to America with what 
their descendants became afterwards, and we can also com- 
pare those descendants with the descendants of the men 
Avho stayed at home in Europe ; and as we also have full 
knowledge of all that has befallen them since they went out, 
v/e can to some extent make out how far their history since 
has been affected by the nature of the land in which they 
dwell, and how far by other causes. With every country it 
is needful to know something of its geography before we 
can understand its history, but this is especially needful in 
America. There is no reason for thinking that the character 
of the country has had more influence on the history of the 
people there than elsewhere, but the influence which it has 
had is moie important to us, because we can make out more 
about it. 

3. Two views of American Geography. — There are two 
ways in which the geography of a country may be looked 
at. We may look at it, so to speak, from within and 
from without. We may consider the country merely as 
one of the various parts of which the world is made up, 
and see how it stands towards other countries, how it 
is separated from them, and how it may be most easily 



r.] GEOGRAPHY OF THE UmTED STATES. 3 

reached from them : or we may consider the country by 
itself, setting all other lands aside for the moment, and 
concerning ourselves entirely with its internal character, its 
shape, soil, climate, and the like. In order to understand 
the history of the American settlements, we must look at the 
geography of America in each of these ways. As the 
founders of the settlements with which we have to deal 
came from Europe, we must see how America stood towards 
Europe, from what parts of Europe it could be most easily 
reached, and in what parts of America men sailing thence 
would be likely to settle. Secondly, we must look at the 
country in which the settlers established themselves, and 
see what effects it was likely to have on the inhabitants ; 
how far it was suited to trade, how far to agriculture, and 
generally what sort of a state was likely to grow up in 
such a country. 

3. Geography of the United States. — However, the subject 
before us is not the history of America, but only of a 
certain part of it, namely, of those English colonies which 
have since become the United States ; therefore we are 
only concerned with the internal geography of so much of 
the country as those States occupy. That is, we have to 
look at a strip of lifnd along the Atlantic coast of America, 
nearly ,2,000 miles long, and at most parts about 200 
miles broad. The present boundary of the States indeed 
extends much farther inland, and so did their professed 
boundary when they were first settled. But, as is almost 
always the case in a newly colonized country, all the settle- 
ments of any importance were along the coast, and, as they 
extended inland, those that were near the coast still kept 
the lead in politics and education and general activity. So 
that, just as for a time the history of Europe was little more 
than the history of the nations along the coast of the 
Mediterranean, so the history of the United States has been 

B 2 



4 AMERICA : ITS GEOGRAFHY. [chap. 

hitherto the history of the English settlements along the coast 
of the Atlantic. 

4. Position of America towards other Countries. — Before 
going into the internal geography of the United States, 
it will be as well to look at the subject in the other way, 
and to consider how America stands towards other coun- 
tries. The first thing probably which strikes everyone on 
looking at a map of America is its complete separation 
from the rest of the world. There is, we may say, no part 
of the eastern coast less than 3,000 miles from Europe, and 
no part of the western less than 6,000 from Asia. Towards 
the north both Asia and Europe are much nearer to America, 
but in those parts the cold is so great, the soil so barren, 
and the sea so unfit for navigation, that it is scarcely possible 
for men to exist on either side in a state of civilization, or 
if they did, to emigrate from one continent to the other. 
As far then as we are concerned, America is separated from 
Europe by the whole of the Atlantic ocean, and from Asia 
by the whole of the Pacific. We can also at once see that 
America reaches almost in a straight line from north to 
south, forming a sort of bar across the western half of the 
world, and facing Europe on the one side and Asia on the 
other. We can see too that in order to reach the west coast 
from Europe or the east coast from Asia, one would have to 
sail right round Africa. So it is clear that no one in the 
common course of things would ever sail from Europe to 
America except across the Atlantic, or from Asia across the 
Pacific, Thus America is twice as far from Asia as it is from 
Europe. Nor is this all. If we look at any map of America 
in which the height of the ground is shown, we shall at once 
see a great ditTerence between the eastern, or, as we may call 
it, the European, and the western or Asiatic coast. A chain 
of mountains runs along the whole length of the continent, 
not like a backbone, down the middle, but all along the 



I.] THE COAST OF AMERICA. 5 

west side, forming a sort of wall between the mainland and 
the' Pacific. In many places these mountains forni steep 
precipices close to the shore, and there is scarcely a single 
spot on the whole coast where land does not almost at once 
rise more than 500 feet above the sea. To make this barrier 
more complete, the face of these mountains is in many parts 
covered with thick woods, and, as we can easily see, it was 
just as impossible for men coming from the east to make 
their way into the country by water as by land. For, except 
far north, there is not on the west side of America a single 
river large enough to be of any use to expeditions of settlers 
wishing to make their way inland. And moreover the 
greater part of the coast is barren and unhealthy, and badly 
supplied with fresh water. If, on the other hand, we look at 
the opposite coast, we shall see that its whole character is 
quite different. For nearly the whole length of it consists 
of low land sloping down to the sea, and all the rivers of 
the American continent flow into it ; and it is well supplied 
with harbours and fertile islands within easy reach of the 
mainland, where ships could stop and take in supplies of 
food and water. Putting together all these differences, and 
remembering that the voyage from Asia to Arnerica was 
twice as long as that from Europe, we can see that those 
European nations who could sail their ships on the Atlantic 
were almost sure to be the colonizers of America. 

5. The Coast of America. — Another point to be noticed 
is that, as the coast line of America runs almost directly 
north and south, there was the greatest possible difference 
of latitude, and therefore of climate, between the various 
parts of the coast. Besides this, there were other points 
of difference between the various parts of the eastern coast. 
It was all well supplied with rivers and harbours, and none 
of it fenced in by mountains. But the most northerly part 
was cold and barren, and unlikely to tempt either colonists 



6 AMERICA: ITS GEOGRAPHY. [chap. 

or traders. Then a long stretch of coast going southward 
from the river Orinoco was unhealthy, and the land could 
hardly be traversed, partly for fear of wild beasts and 
partly from the vast growth of forest and underwood ; and 
the rivers, although broad, were so swift as to be difficult 
to sail up, and full of alhgators, and it was unsafe to halt 
on the banks. To the south of this again there was a 
tract of fertile land fit for settlements. But as this was 
much farther from Europe than the more northerly parts, 
settlers would not be likely to go there as long as any 
of the country which could be more easily reached was 
unoccupied. So that the land which was in every way 
most fit for settlements was that which lay somewhat t6 
the south-west of Europe, stretching from the Gulf of 
St. Lawrence on the north to the mouth of the Orinoco on 
the south. This is not all mainland. For fiom Point Sable 
at the end of the promontory of Florida where the coast 
turns northward, to the island of Trinidad where the coast, 
after winding round the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean 
Sea, again turns south, there is a belt of islands running 
right across from point to point. And since the widest outlet 
between any of these islands is less than loo miles, men 
sailing from Europe could hardly fail to light on them before 
they reached the mainland beyond. And as these islands 
are fertile and well watered, and have many good harbours, 
we can see that the possession of them would be a great 
advantage to any nation attempting to colonize the main- 
land. For an island, if well supplied with necessaries, is a 
far more secure position for a small force than any point on 
the mainland can be ; especially for those who can command 
the sea and have nothing to fear from their neighbours ex- 
cept by land. And men who had once established themselves 
in these islands could form small settlements and make forts 
and build fleets, and so use the islands as stepping-stones to 



I.] THE NORTHERN COAST. 7 

farther conquests on the mainland. So that whatever civi- 
liztd nation held these islands held the key of America, and 
had it in its power to colonize the mainland both to the 
north and south, and to keep out other nations, so far as its 
resources and the number of settlers that it could spare 
might allow. 

6. The Northern Coast. — The coast however which lies just 
to the north-west of these islands is that on which the English 
colonies were placed, and with which therefore we are most 
concerned. One can easily see that there is no tract along 
the whole coast of America better supplied with harbours and 
navigable rivers. It will be seen too that there is no chain of 
mountains of any importance for nearly 250 miles inland. 
Of the nature of the soil, the chief thing to be noticed is that 
along the greater part of the coast, the most fertile land, 
or at least that which was best fitted for growing corn and 
the other necessaries of life, is cut off from the sea by a 
belt of poorer soil. Thus the general tendency of the settle- 
ments was to extend inland, as there were neither mountains 
nor forests to hinder them, and the rivers offered easy means 
of carriage. As was said before, the history of the United 
States is the history of a strip of land along the Atlantic 
coast; but it is also the history of a movement from" that 
coast towards the west. But it must be remembered that 
this movement was always an exteision and not a migra- 
tion ; that is to say, that it was made not by the inhabitants 
of the coast leaving their abodes and moving inland, but by 
new settlers, or those born in America who wanted land, 
gradually moving westward without losing their connexion 
with the original settlements. Of course, over such a vast 
tract of country there were gi-eat differences in soil and 
climate, and other respects, but it will be best to speak of 
these when we come to dail one by one with the history 
of the separate States. 



8 AMERICA: ITS NATIVES. [chap, 

7. The Natives. — There is another sulDJect besides the 
geography of America at which we must look if we would 
understand in what sort of a country the European colonists 
had to settle. They found men already dwelling in all 
those parts of America which they explored, and the 
character of these inhabitants had a great effect on the 
colonies. It will be most convenient for our purpose to 
divide these people into three groups. Firstly, there were 
those nations who in many things were quite as clever 
and skilful as any of the inhabitants of Europe, and had 
as much or more knowledge of many matters, such as farm- 
ing, road-making, building, carpentry, and working in gold 
and silver, and who may therefore be fairly called civilized. 
Then there were those who were not nearly so advanced in 
those acquirements, but who yet had so much knowledge of 
many of the useful arts that we must call them at least Jialf- 
civilized. Lastly, there were those who understood as little ot 
those things as is possible for any nation who live together 
in settled groups and are at all better than wild beasts, and 
these we may call savages. These three groups will answer 
roughly to three geographical divisions. The first group 
will occupy the whole of the mountain-chain along the v/est 
coast, from the south of Peru to the north of Mexico, and 
will include four nations, the Peruvians, the Muyscans, the 
Mexicans, and the Tlascalans. But they can only be roughly 
described as occupying this region, since the Peruvians are 
separated from the Muyscans and the Muyscans from the 
Mexicans by wide districts inhabited by tribes of the second, 
or half-civilized, class. The Tlascalans were just to the 
east of Mexico near the coast, and they seem to have been 
the only important tribe that kept its independence when the 
Mexicans conquered the rest of the neighbouring countries. 
Eesides the interval of country just mentioned between the 
greater nations, the second group inhabited the whole coast 



I.] DIVISION OF RACES. 9 

from the mouth of the Orinoco to the north side of the Gulf 
of Mexico, and all the islands of that coast. The third 
group, that with which we are most closely concerned, occu- 
pied all the country that now forms the territory of the 
United States, of Canada, and some parts of Mexico. 

8. Division of Races. — It must be understood that such 
a division as this is not like that which is usually made of 
the nations of Europe and Asia, when they are divided into 
races or families. For then we may say distinctly that 
a nation is Teutonic, or Celtic, or Slavonic, or it may 
be a mixture of Celtic and Teutonic. But in our division 
of the natives of America into three groups, some tribes 
are just on the line between the groups, so that one person 
might place them in one group and another in another, and 
it would be difficult to say whether a particular nation 
was at the bottom of one class or at the top of another. 
This being so, we have no names by which exactly to 
describe each of the three groups. With the first this need 
cause no difficulty, for it includes only four nations, and we 
shall seldom have occasion to speak of them as forming one 
class. With the ethers the case is different ; for they are 
made up of so many small and scattered tribes, each with 
a name of its own, that it would be quite impossible to deal 
with them . without some name which takes in the whole 
group. The name which was given by the first settlers to all 
the natives alike, and which has come down to our own time, 
is Indians, while the third group, or at least the chief pait 
of it, is distinguished as Red Indians. This name oi Indians 
grew out of a mistake made by the early voyagers as to the 
geography of America. For, knowing nothing of the western 
side of America, and very little of the eastern parts of Asia, 
thty had no idea that these were separated by a vast ocean, 
but believed that they were all parts of one country, and this 
they called The Indies. Then, for the sake of clearness, they 



lo AMERICA: ITS NATIVES. [ciiAP. 

called what they believed to be the two sides of this coast, The 
East and West Indies, according as they were reached from 
Europe by sailing east or west. Soon after its discovery 
the mainland got the name of America from an Italian, 
Amerigo Vespucci, who was one of the first voyagers thither. 
But those parts which alone were known to the first dis- 
coverers, namely, the islands outside the Mexican Gulf, still 
kept the name of The West Indies, and keep it to this day. 
And though we have so far got rid of this mode of speaking 
that we never make use of the name of India except for a 
particular part of Asia, we still keep the old use, not only in 
the name of the West Indies, but when we speak of the 
East India Company and the East India Docks, and the 
like. And the name Indian now usually means a native of 
America, not of India itself. It will be most convenient to 
give this name to our third group, and to call them simply 
Indians, and when we have occasion to speak of the second 
group to call them the Indians of South America, or of the 
Islands, as the case may be. Only it must be remembered 
that this way of speaking, like many others in history, which 
it is impossible to avoid, had its origin in a mistake. 

9. The Civilized Races. — Our knowledge of the first of 
these three groups comes almost wholly from Spanish 
writers, who describe the conquest of America by Spain. 
These writers seldom cared to inquire into the history 
and customs of the natives, except so far as they have 
something to do with the conquest. Thus, as the Muys- 
cans and Tlascalans were never conquered at a single 
stroke like the Mexicans and Peruvians, we hear but little 
of them. The Tlascalans differed from the others in their 
government, which was much more free, and they seem to 
have been the bravest and most warlike of all the civilized 
nations of America. The other three nations were all 
alike in two important points. Each was governed by a 



I.] THE CIVILIZED RACES. il 

hereditary line of monarchs, and each believed that in former 
times some man of a superior race had visited them and 
taught them their religion and many of their arts. All of 
them seem to have been as well supplied with the com- 
forts of life as any of the nations of Europe in that age. 
They were skilful husbandmen, and built good houses and 
richly decorated temples, and in their dress they studied 
both ornament and comfort, and they worked cleverly with 
gold and silver and precious stones. In one of the most 
useful arts, that of road-making, the Mexicans and Peruvians 
were both far in advance of the Europeans of that age. For 
though both countries were woody and mountainous, there 
were roads between all the great cities, and in Peru there 
was a great high road as wonderful as any work ever made by 
human hands. It was nearly 200 miles long, and in places 
it was carried by galleries and terraces and staircases along 
the side of precipices ; and steep ravines were either filled 
up with masonry or had hanging bridges thrown across them. 
On all the great roads, both in Peru and Mexico, there were 
stations at short intervals, with messengers, kept by the Go- 
vernment, who ran from one to the other. In this way, without 
the use of steam or horses, messages, and even goods, could 
be sent at the rate of 200 miles a day. So that it is said 
that, though the city of Mexico was 200 miles inland, yet fish 
from the sea was served at the Emperor's table only twenty- 
four hours after it was caught. In the art of fortification 
they seem to have been little, if at all, behind Europeans. 
For near Cuzco, the great city of Peru, was a fortress 1,200 
feet long, all built of finely wrought stones closely fitted 
together without mortar, and this was joined to the city by 
underground galleries. They also understood how to make 
the best of naturally strong places by building their fortresses 
on the edge of precipices, and cutting away rocks so as only 
to leave a steep face. The Tlaslacans had enclosed their whole 



12 AMERICA: ITS NATIVES. [chap. 

country with a wall, and its entrance was so arranged that 
anyone coming in was liable to be shot at by archers and 
spearmen, who were themselves behind the wall. In Peru and 
Mexico all the public buildings, the temples and palaces and 
market-places and gardens, were larger and in many ways 
more beautiful than anything of the kind in Europe. What 
makes all this the more wonderful is that the people had no 
knowledge of the use of iron, nor any wheeled carriages, nor 
beasts of burthen able to bear any great weight, so that 
everything had to be done by men's hands with scarcely any 
help. 

ID. The Peruvians, — Though the Peruvians and Mexicans 
were in many ways alike, still there were points in which they 
differed widely, and to understand these we must consider the 
two nations separately. The country of Peru formed a strip of 
land along the west coast about 3,000 miles long and 400 or 
500 broad ; a great part of this is occupied by high mountains. 
But the valleys between, and even parts of the mountain 
slopes, were fertile, and everything was done by watering and 
skilful husbandry to make the best of the soil, and all the 
country except the very highest ground was thickly peopled. 
The inhabitants were probably the most civilized of all the 
nations of America, and in one way at least they were the 
most remarkable of all the races of the earth of whom we 
know anything. There is no people told of in history who 
lived so completely according to the will of their rulers, and 
who had all the arrangement of their life and all their doings 
so completely settled for them. They were governed by a 
hereditary line of Emperors, called Incas. These Incas were 
believed to be, and probably were, of a different race from the 
rest of the Peruvians; and the Inca nobility, the kindred of the 
Emperor, held all the great offices, and seemed to have been 
the only persons who enjoyed any kind of freedom. All the 
land was divided into three parts — one for the Sun, whom they 



I.] THE PERUVIANS. 13 

worshipped as a god, another for the Inca, and the rest for 
the nation. The first two shares were cultivated by all the 
people working together, and then they were free to till their 
own land. This third portion was from time to time divided 
into lots, and one of these lots given to every man in the 
nation, a lai'ger or smaller lot according to the number of his 
family, to be held till the land was again divided. All the 
produce of the country besides what was grown on the soil 
was got from the mines and from beasts, wild and tame. All 
these belonged to the Inca, and all the labour of getting in 
the produce and making it into useful articles was done by 
the people working without pay as his servants. Then from 
the stores so procured such things as were needed by the 
people, clothes and the like, were served out as they were 
wanted. As the land allotted to each man was only enough 
to feed himself and his family, no one could have any pro- 
perty except his house and land ; and there was no buying and 
selling, and no man could grow rich except the Inca or his 
kindred, who were freed from work and perhaps had estates 
of their own. But though the people lived in this way, little 
better than slaves, they seem to have been well off for all 
bodily comforts, and to have been most carefully watched 
over by the Incas, that none might be overworked and all well 
cared for in old age and sickness. As there was no trade, and 
no one except the Inca and his chief nobles had anything to 
do with the government, the only things besides manual 
labour in which the mass of the people v/ere concerned were 
religion and war. Their religion consisted for the most part 
of the worship of the Sun. They had indeed other gods, but 
the Sun was by far the most important. As we have seen, a 
third of the land was set aside for the Sun, and the produce 
was used to maintain a great number of priests, and to pro- 
vide great public festivals, at which wine and food were offered 
to their god. This worship of the Sun may be said to have 



14 AMERICA : ITS NA TIVES. [chap. 

been in a manner the object for which the nation existed. 
For all its wars, like those of the Mahometans, were made 
to extend the religion of the nation and to force other people 
to worship as they did. Yet their religion seems to have done 
very little towards quickening their minds, nor do their priests 
seem to have had much influence over them, nor to have 
taught them to think about matters of right andwrong. Indeed 
in general it would seem as if the Peruvians had very little 
power of thinking. For, even in those arts in which they 
excelled, they do not seem to have had any turn for invention, 
or for anything more than doing well and carefully what 
their fathers had done before them. Moreover, as everything 
was done for them by the Incas, and no man could get rich 
by his own skill or wit, or in any way advance himself, a clever 
man was no better off than a stupid one, and there was nothing 
to sharpen men's powers and to teach them to act and think 
for themselves. Such an empire, however great and power- 
ful it might seem, rested on no sure foundation. For if any 
mischance befell the Inca, the whole empire was left helpless, 
and the different parts of it had no power of protecting them- 
selves. For though the skill of the Peruvians in fortification 
and making weapons and the like miglit enable them to con- 
quer neighbouring nations who were backward in such things, 
yet this would profit them little against civilized enemies. 
The veiy size of the empire too was a source of weakness : 
for it is always hard to manage and guard the distant 
frontier of a great empire, especially when it is made up of 
newly-conquered, and perhaps unfriendly, provinces. For in 
such there will almost always be some disobedience and 
some remains of hatred ; and a crafty enemy will make 
use of these, and so turn the strength of the empire against 
itself and almost conquer it by the hands of its own 
i^ubjects. 

1 1. The Mexicans. — The Mexicans, althoujrh in some 



I.] THE. ISLANDERS. 1$ 

ways like the Peruvians, differed from them in many im- 
portant points. Though under the government of a single 
ruler, they enjoyed far greater freedom in the general affairs 
of life. Men bought and sold and got wealth, and rich 
merchants occupied positions of great dignity in the state. 
In handicrafts they were perhaps scarcely equal to the 
Peruvians ; but in other and more important matters they 
were far ahead of them. For while the Peruvians had no 
alphabet, and nothing of the kind better than knots tied 
on pieces of string as tokens, the Mexicans had a system 
of writing, in which they did not use letters, but signified 
things by pictures and emblems. The priests also, who 
were the most learned class among them, had gone far in 
the knowledge of astronomy. Their religion, unlike that 
of the Peruvians, seems to have had a great influence on 
their conduct, and dwelt much on their good and bad 
deeds and the importance of right and wrong in the sight 
of God; and it taught them to humble themselves and make 
amends for their sins by fasts and penances. But there 
was one feature in their religion which quite outweighed any 
good that it might have done. For they sacrificed men, 
and that not on rare occasions, but commonly and in 
great numbers, and feasted solemnly on their flesh. They 
were fierce and cruel in their dealings with the neighbouring 
countries, and some of these they had overcame, and others, 
like Tlascala, were still independent and at war with them. 
Though the people were a far abler and less slavish race than 
the Peruvians, the empire was beset by the same danger. 
For its frontier was threatened alike by unfaithful subjects 
and open enemies. 

12. The Islanders. — Of our second group, the people of 
the islands and the neighbouring mainland, it is not need- 
ful to say much. They were divided into many small 
tribes living in separate villages, each governed by a chief 



l6 AMERICA: ITS NATIVES. [chap. 

or Cacique of its own, and having little to do with one 
another either in the way of friendship or of war. They 
dwelt in stone houses, and lived chiefly by tillage, depend- 
ing but little either on hunting or fishing. They seem to 
have had most of the comforts of life and to have shown 
some skill in handicrafts ; but, scattered as they were in 
small groups, they could accomplish nothing like the great 
works and buildings of Mexico and Peru. They were 
kindly and well-disposed people, peaceable among them- 
selves and hospitable to strangers. But they were weak in 
body and mind, and in no way fit to resist an enemy that 
came against them in any force. For they had neither the 
strength of the civilized man which lies in fortresses and 
military engines, nor that of the savage in hardihood and 
cunning and being able to leave his home at a moment's notice 
and plunge into the forest. So these islanders were at the 
mercy of any civilized nation that attacked them, and might 
almost be called born slaves. 

13. The Red Indians. — The th'/d group contains those 
with whom the English settlers had to deal, and it is 
therefore needful that we should have a clear idea of what 
manner of people they were. In judging of what they 
were when the settlers came among them, we must be 
careful not to be misled by those who have only seen 
them in later times ; for those white men who have had 
most to do with the Indians have been traders whose only 
object was to make money out of them, and who have 
seldom scrupled to cheat and injure them. Even the Mis- 
sionaries, and those who wished well to the Indians, have 
for the most part only seen them after the traders had brought 
in drunkenness and other vices, and taught them to distrust 
all white men as enemies and knaves, so that we can only 
learn the real character of the Indians from the first explorers 
who saw them before any white men had come among them, 



I.] THE RED E\'DL1.\'S. 17 

and from those travellers who have been in districts where 
the tr iders had scarcely made their way. The account that 
we ha\e from these writers is very difterent from, and on 
the whole much more favourable than, that generally given. 
Nothing could be more different than the life of these northern 
nations from that of the civilized races of America. The 
Indians were divided into a vast number of tribes, the largest 
of which numbered about forty or fifty thousand, while 
most of them were much smaller. Each of these tribes had 
its own territory, and was quite independent of the rest, and 
only in one instance do they seem to have attempted to unite 
in larger bodies. In the northern countries on each side of 
the Canadian lakes there was a league or confederacy, con- 
sisting at one time of five and at another of six of the most 
powerful and warlike nations. But this seems to have been the 
only attempt of the kind. All the tribes of any size were 
subdivided into villages, which were almost independent, each 
managing its own aft'airs under its own chief. Each tribe 
was governed by a hereditary head chief, but, as is always 
the case where there are no written laws and scarcely a fi.xed. 
system of government, the authority of these head chiefs 
varied greatly. An able and ambitious chief was really the 
king of the nation, and arranged matters after his own will ; 
but with a weak or easy-tempered head, the under-chiefs, or 
sachems, as they were called, governed their own villages much 
as they pleased. In no case however did the chief either 
of a tribe or of a nation govern by his own arbitrary will, 
but all important matters were settled by public meetings, at 
which every man renowned either for wisdom or courage was 
entitled to be heard. As might be supposed, a people living 
in this scattered fashion had none of the arts of life but in 
the simplest and rudest forms. They tilled the soil, after a 
fashion, and grew scanty crops of corn and vegetables ; but 
this labour was considered disgraceful and left entirely to the 

c 



iS AMERICA: irS NATIVES. [chap. 

women ; tlieyknew nothing about building in stone, but lived, 
some in huts made of timber daubed with mud, such as is 
often used now in English farm-buildings, and most of them 
in tents made of poles and skins. Yet it seems as if they 
neglected all useful industry rather because their mode of life 
did not need it, and could not indeed have been much bettered 
by it, than frorii any incapacity. For they showed themselves 
in no way unskilful in those few handicrafts to which they 
did apply themselves. Living in a country full of lakes and 
rivers, they needed boats, and these they made with great 
skill. Some tribes indeed hollowed them out of single 
logs by a slow and toilsome process, but others made 
them of wicker-work covered with birch bark skilfully sewn 
together. Many of their articles, such as hatchets, bows, 
lances, shields .and pipes, were cleverly constructed, and often 
tastefully ornamented ; and they showed great skill in dressing 
skins for their clothes, and decorating their robes and head- 
dresses with feathers. As the woods swarmed with game, 
which gave them all they wanted in the way of food and 
clothing, it is not easy to see what need they had for mecha- 
nical arts, or in what way such knowledge would have made 
them happier. For we must not suppose that the degraded 
and unhappy life which they have been seen leading in 
modern times is anything like their natural condition. On 
the contrary, they seem to have been a remarkably happy 
and cheerful people, fond of amusements and games, and 
clever in contriving them. Besides the games of ball in 
which the whole tribe joined, they had public dances and 
sham fights, both conducted with regular movements, which 
could only be learned by careful study and drill. One matter 
in which all the tribes seemed to have resembled one another 
more or less, was their religion. There were various points 
of difference, and some tribes had different modes of worship 
from others, yet all alike believed in one supreme God, or Great 



I.] THE RED INDIANS. 19 

Spirit, as they called Him. They believed that He watched 
ail their actions and rewarded and punished them, and they 
sought to please Him by penances, and prayers and fastings, 
and by great public feasts, though not, as it seems, by hunian 
sacrifices as the Mexicans did. They also believed that 
men would live again after death, and be happy or miserable 
according as they deserved well or ill in this world. Though 
they were so far behind the other nations of America in 
mechanical skill, yet in sagacity and political cleverness they 
were probably in advance of them ; for, living as they did in 
small bodies, where each man had a voice in affairs, every 
man's wits were called out to the utmost, and no one was 
suffered to become a mere machine. Their two chief pursuits, 
hunting and war, had the same effect. For hunting, especially 
when done not for sport but to get food, not only makes men 
strong and active and quickens their eyesight, but teaches 
them readiness and patience. And their system of war was 
not like that of civilized soldiers, where only one man in a 
thousand has to think and the rest have little more to do 
than to obey, but they went out in small parties, sometimes 
of two or three ; and there was scarcely any hand-to-hand 
fighting, but everything lay in outwitting and surprising the 
enemy. They did not think mere strength and courage 
without wit enough for a ruler, for in many tribes there were 
two chiefs, one to govern in peace and the other to lead in 
war ; and in some cases chiefs who had lost the use of their 
limbs, but whose wisdom was highly valued, still kept their 
power,- -and we even read of women chiefs. Speaking gene- 
rally, they seem to have been good friends and dangerous foes, 
kind and hospitable to strangers so long as they suspected no 
guile, but utterly merciless when they had once begun a 
quarrel. For of their faults cruelty was by far the worst, and 
in war they spared neither women nor children, and not 
content with killing their prisoners, they put them to dreadful 

C 2 



20 AMERICA: ITS NATIVES. [chap. 

tortures. Yet it must be said that, if they were ready to 
inflict torture, they were likewise ready to bear it; and indeed 
an Indian prisoner would have felt insulted if he had been 
merely put to death without a chance of showing what 
torments he could undergo quietly. Nor must we forget that 
it is only quite lately that civilized men in Europe have 
ceased to inflict sufferings on one another fully as great, both 
in war and in the execution of cruel laws. 

Such a people as this, one can easily see, would be stubborn 
foes for any strangers to deal with. Their country too was 
ill-suited for civilized troops. For as there were no cities or 
storehouses, and scarcely any crops, it would be hardly pos- 
sible for large bodies of men who did no^ know the country 
to maintain themselves. Moreover, the two great advantages 
which civilized men possess in war, horses and fire-arms, would 
be of much less value in such a country. For among rivers 
and forests horses are of little use, and, without horses 
and waggons to carry ammunition, fire-arms lose half their 
value. So altogether, settlers in such a country might look 
for a very different resistance from that to be found in the 
islands, or even in Peru and Mexico. 

It has been necessary to say as much as this about the 
various races of natives, for without having a clear idea of 
them we cannot understand the diftcrences that there were 
between the various European Colonies. 



II.] THE LISCOVERY OF AMERICA. 



CHAPTER II. 

THE EUROPEAN SETTLFMENTS IN AMERICA DURING THE 
SIXTEENTH CENTURY. 

The discovery of Amer'ca (i)— Chrh'opher Cohuidms (z) — Sebastian 
Cal'ot (3) — ccnqitest of Mexico (4) — conquest of Peru (5) — 
Spaniavi/s on the no f them coast (6) — the French in Floriia (7) 
— character of the Spanish conqu sts (8) — the early En-^lish 
voyagers (9) — raids on the Spanish colonies (10) — Gilbert's v y- 
age (11) — Raleigh's frst colony (12) — Raleigh's second colony (13) 
— /; ospects 0/ English colonization { 14). 

I. The Discovery of America. — In studying the discovery 
of America and the first attempts at settlement there, two 
things must always be borne in mind. In the first place, 
it is really not at all easy to understand how enormous a 
difference the discovery of America made to the world. We 
are so familiar with the world as it is, that it is difficult to 
imagine it as it seemed to those who lived in the fifteenth 
century. We must remember that not only was America 
then undiscovered, but other large parts of the world, as 
we know it, were either actually unknown, or known only 
in a hazy and uncertain fashion. We must remember too 
that only a few specially learned and far-sighted men had 
any idea that there were other lands beyond those that they 
knew. So that the discovery of America was not like the 
exploration of a new country which is believed to exist, but 
of whose nature men are ignorant ; it was, as it is often 
called, the discovery of a New World, of a world whose 
existence was never suspected by most men. And we can 
best understand how great a change this must have seemed 



22 EUROPEAN SETTLEMENTS IN AMERICA, [chap. 

by looking at a map of the world as it really is and at one 
of the world as it was then supposed to be. 

In the second place, we must remember that, like many 
things of which we are apt to speak as if they had been 
done at a single stroke, the discovery of America was really a 
very gradual process. Columbus himself, the first discoverer, 
possibly never knew that he had found a new Continent ; and 
many years passed before men fully understood how America 
stood to the rest of the world. This ignorance of what lay 
beyond had a great deal to do with the adventurous spirit 
in which the men of that age went to America. For the 
further they went the more wonderful the New World 
became ; and even when the bounds of it had been reached, 
there was nothing to tell them that there weie not things 
more marvellous beyond. 

2. Christopher Columbus. — Before the end of the fifteenth 
" century, the only nations of Europe that had made much 
progress in seamanship were the Portuguese and the Italians. 
The Portuguese were the most enterprising voyagers, and 
had sailed along the coast of Africa and to the Canary 
Islands. But the Italians seem to have been the most 
scientific geographers and the most far-seeing about the 
finknown portions of the world. There does not however 
seem to have been much zeal about voyages of discovery 
in Italy itself, and all the great Italian navigators of that 
age made their discoveries in the ships of other countries. 
Of these navigators Christopher Columbus was the first 
and greatest. Whether he hoped by sailing to the west to 
discover a new continent, or only to get a direct route to 
Eastern Asia, it is hard to say. Whatever his scheme may 
have been, he had no small trouble to get the means for 
trying it. For after spending some eight years in seeking 
to persuade various sovereigns and great men to employ 
him in a voyage of discovery, he at last with great difficulty 



II.] SEBASTIAN CABOT. 23 

got what he wanted from the sovereigns of Spain, Ferdinand 
apd Isabella. On the 3rd of August, 1492, he sailed with 
three ships, and on the 12th of October landed on the island 
which the Spaniards afterwards called Hispaniola and we 
now St. Domingo. He there founded a town and named it 
St. Salvador, and Spanish settlements soon spread over the 
island. But it was about twenty years before they extended 
to the neighbouring islands or the mainland. 

3. Sebastian Cabot. — The next great discovery was mnde 
four years later, and is one of special interest to English- 
men. In 1497, Sebastian Cabot, a Genoese by descent, 
but born and bred in England, set sail from Bristol with 
a ship manned by Englishmen, and discovered Newfound- 
land and all the coast north of Florida. Thus, though 
Columbus discovered the islands, Cabot was the first 
European who is known for certain to have sailed to the 
mainland of America. On the strength of his voyage, 
England for a long while after put forward a sp-ecial claim 
to the land to which he had sailed. In that age it was 
customary for such adventurers to obtain a patent from 
the sovereign of the country from which they sailed. This 
patent was a docunent giving various privileges, such 
as the right of importing merchandise free of duty, an(^ 
often granting some authority over any land that might 
be discovered. Cabot had obtained such a patent before 
his first voyage, and on his return he procured a fresh 
one, and made a second voyage, of which no details are 
known. In 1501 three Bristol merchants and three Portu- 
guese obtained a patent from the English king, and it seems 
likely that some voyages were made about this time, but 
nothing certain is known about them. In any case, it did 
not seem as if England was likely to take a leading part in 
the settlement of America— for at that time she was quite 
unfit for any great undertakings on the sea. She had no 



24 EUROPEAN SETTLEMENTS m AMERICA, [chap. 

large ships or skilful seamen, and, except a few boats that 
sailed north for fish from Bristol and other ports in the west, 
all her merchandise was carried in foreign vessels. And 
Henry VI 1., who then reigned, was a cautious and somewhat 
miserly king, and very unlikely to risk anything for an un- 
certain return. So, looking at all the nations of Europe, it 
seemed as if Spain alone was likely to do anything impor- 
tant in America. The Portuguese were taken up with their 
voyages to the coast of Africa, and the French seemed fully 
occupied at home. For though in 1524 Verrazzani, another 
Italian navigator, was sent out by the k ng of France, 
Francis 1., and made great discoveries on the American 
coast, yet France was too much taken up with her long and 
unsuccessful war with Spain for these discoveries to be 
followed further. Soon after that the country was torn to 
pieces with civil wars, and had no time for distant enter- 
prises. ^ Thus during the sixteenth century France had very 
little to do with the colonization of America. There were 
moreover many things in the character and temper of the 
Spaniards which specially fitted them for such a task. For 
many years they had been engaged in almost continuous 
war with the Moors, and this had given them a great love 
of adventure for its own sake, and a great desire for 
preaching Christianity to the heathen, and, if necessary, 
for forcing them to accept it. And it required some strong 
passions like these to make men face all the dangers which 
lay before them in the New World. 

4. Conquest of Mexico. — For the first twenty years the 
Spaniards kept almost entirely to Hispaniola, and only a 
few unimportant settlements were made on the mainland or 
on the neighbouring islands, and most of them were not 
regular settlements, but only stations for pearl fishing. It 
was not till 15 18 that any great attempt was made on the 
mainland, In that year, Velasquez, the governor of His- 



II.] CONQUEST OF MEXICO. 25 

paniola, sent out a- small fleet to explore the mainland. 
As this fleet did not return so soon as he expected, he 
sent out a larger expedition, with about 550 Spaniaids 
and 300 Indians. The command of this expedition was 
given to Hernando Cortez, a man of thirty-three, who had 
distinguished himself by courage and sagacity in an ex- 
pedition on the mainland, but had never held any important 
oftice. Soon after he reached the mainland he got tidings 
of the great empire and city of Mexico. Hearing that the 
people were heathens and had much gold, he resolved to 
disregard his orders, and with his small force to march 
to the city and compel the people to become Christians 
and acknowledge the King of Spain as their lord. He 
made allies of the nations by the way, subduing some by 
arms and persuading others, and causing all of them to be 
baptized. But naturally these new-made allies were of no 
great value, and could not be trus'.ed in time of need, and 
all that Cortez could really depend on were his 550 Spaniards. 
With these and some of the others he marched into the 
city of Mexico. There he established himself, and was at 
first received by the people as the friend of their emperor, 
and dwelt in one of the palaces, and before long forced the 
emperor himself to live there as a sort of state prisoner. 
The Mexicans soon resented this, and open war broke out. 
After various changes of fortune, and being once driven out 
of the city, in 1521 Cortez finally conquered Mexico. He 
had by that time received more than one reinforcement from 
home, but these only filled the places of those whom he had 
lost, so that at the last he had less than 6co Spaniards with 
whom to conquer the great empire. Such a force would 
have been utterly unequal to the task but for three things. 
They had horses and fire-arms, neither of which the natives 
had ever seen ; and in Cortez himself they had one cf the 
wisest and bravest captains that ever lived. To conquer 



26 EUROPEAN SETTLEMENTS IN AMERICA, [chap. 

such an empire with such a force was a wonderful exploit, 
but there were many things which made it even more won- 
derful than it seems. For Cortez had no authority from the 
governor of Hispaniola for what he was doing, and was in 
constant dread of being recalled. One Narvaez was actually 
sent out with a fresh force to bring him back. But Cortez 
defeated Narvaez and joined this force to his own, and so 
turned what was meant for a hindrance into a help. Not 
only was his force small, but the men were such as he could 
hardly trust ; nor was there anything in the former deeds of 
Cortez to put his soldiers in awe of him or to give them con- 
fidence in his success. So little faith indeed had he in their 
loyalty, that he sunk his fleet to guard against any chance 
of their deserting him. The Tlascalans too. and the other 
native allies, were but an uncertain support, and apt to fail 
him when things went badly with him and he mo^t needed 
their aid. But what was more wonderful still, and far more 
honourable to Cortez, was that he not only conquered 
Mexico, but having conquered it, ruled it well and protected 
the natives against the Spaniards. Not indeed that he, any 
more than the rest of his countrymen, was perfectly free 
from blame. In establishing his power he did things which 
we in this day should deem atrociously cruel. But these 
were all done in establishing Christianity and Spanish rule, 
things which Cortez firmly believed to be for the good of the 
Mexicans. They were not done, like many of the Spanish 
cruelties elsewhere, from lust of gold or in mere wantonness. 
Moreover, after the war had once begun, the Mexicans, 
unlike the natives elsewhere, provoked the Spaniards by 
acts of great ferocity. When we consider what it is to 
keep men in order who have just won a great victory 
and are all claiming their reward, and how completely the 
other Spanish conquerors failed in this matter, we see that 
Cortez was something far more than a great general. Through 



H.] CONQUEST OF PERU. 27 

.his efforts the state of the natives was always far better in 
Mexico than in the other Spanish provinces. 

5. Conquest of Peru.— Immediately after the conquest 
of Mexico the other great Spanish conquest took place, 
that which we may say gave Spain possession of South 
America. In 1512, one Vasco Nufiez, a man of great 
wisdom and courage, had set out from Darien, one of the 
earliest Spanish settlements on the east coast, and marched 
across the Isthmus of Panama, and had seen the Pacific 
ocean and heard of the rich lands beyond. But he quar- 
relled with the governor of Darien and was put to death 
as a traitor, and for the time nothing came of his dis- 
coveries. In 1525, Francis Pizarro, a kinsman of Cortez, 
who no doubt had the conquest of Mexico before his eyes 
as an example, undertook an expedition to the south. He 
sailed along the west coast and landed in the territory 
of Peru, and in about nine years completely overthrew the 
Peruvian empire. Though, as far as mere daring and skill 
in war go, Pizarro was little if at all behind Cortez, in other 
respects he was far inferior. Yox Cortez undertook a task 
the like of which no man had ever attempted, and he 
persuaded his men to follow him in what must have seemed 
a hopeless and almost a mad enterprise. But Pizarro 
throughout had the example of Cortez to encourage himself 
and his followers. Pizarro too was well befriended at home 
and provided with men and supplies, while Cortez had 
almost as much to fear from his countrymen behind him as 
from the enemy in front. After the conquest the real dif- 
ference was yet more fully shown. For Cortez not only 
overthrew a great empire, but he succeeded in the harder 
task of establishing a fresh government in its place, and that 
among a people of whose history and character he knew but 
little. But Pizarro utterly failed in this respect. He was 
himself murdered by conspirators, and the settlers fought 



28 EUROPEAN SETTLEMENTS IN AMERICA, [chap. 

amongst themselves, and rebelled against the governors that 
were sent out from Spain, and for a while Peru was utterly 
torn to pieces with conspiracies and civil wars, so that it 
was nearly twenty years before the country was brought into 
any kind of order, 

6. Spaniards on the Northern Coast.— In the meantime, 
and after this, other discoveries and conquests were made 
by the Spaniards which in any other age would have 
seemed wonderful, but which were overshadowed by these 
two great exploits. Those we may pass over, taking the 
cases of Mexico and Peru as specimens of the Spanish 
conquests. One thing however must be noticed. Hitherto 
the islands had been the great centre of all activity and 
enterprise among the Spanish settlers. But now the islands 
became less important, and Mexico and Peru served as two 
fresh starting-points from which discoveries and conquests 
were made. This may have had some effect on the English 
settlements by preventing the Spaniards from occupying the 
land which England afterwards colonized. For men sailing 
from the islands would be far more likely to settle on the 
northern coast than if they made their way inland from Mexico. 
The attempts that were made in that direction did not meet 
with such success as to encourage further efforts. In 15 12 
one Ponce de Leon had explored Florida in search of a 
fountain whose water was supposed to give endless life. But 
instead of finding the fountain, he was killed nine years later 
by the natives. During the next thirty years the Spaniards 
made other expeditions into Florida, but they all ended 
unluckily, either through the hostility of the natives or the 
difficulties of the country. The fate of these adventurers 
leads one to think that Cortez and Pizarro might have fared 
very differently if they had tried their fortinies anywhere to 
the north of the Gulf of Mexico. 

7. The French in Florida. — In 1562 the first attempt 



II.] THE FRENCH IN FLORIDA. 29 

was made by another European nation to follow the 
example of Spain. A number of French Protestants settled 
on the coast of Florida. Many of them were disorderly 
and lawless, and a party of these got possession of two 
ships without the lea-v'e of Laudonniere, the governor, and 
betook themselves to piracy. The colony was soon ex- 
posed to dangers from without as well as from within. 
The Spanish king Philip, a bigoted Roman Catholic, 
resolved not to suffer a Protestant colony to settle on the 
coast of America, and sent out one Melendez to destroy the 
French town and establish a Spanish one in its place. He 
obeyed his orders, fell upon the French and massacred 
nearly all of them, and founded a Spanish town,' which he 
named St. Augustine. Two years later this massacre \vas 
avenged by a French captain, Dominic de Gourgues. At 
his own expense he fitted out a fleet and sailed to Florida. 
There he surprised the Spanish settlement, and put to death 
the gi'eater part of the inhabitants. But this success was 
not followed up by the French, and Spain kept possession 
of the country. Dreadful as these doings were, England 
may be said in some measure to have gained by them. The 
massacre of the French settlers may have done something 
to withhold their countrymen from trying their fortunes in 
the New World, and so may have helped to keep the country 
open for English colonists. So too De Gourgues' expedition 
may have taught the Spaniards some caution in dealing with 
the settlements of other nations. After this St. .\ugustine 
continued to be the furthermost point occupied by the 
Spaniards in that direction. Two voyages of discovery were 
made towards the north, but nothing came of them, and all 
the coast beyond Florida was left open to fresh settlers. The 
Spaniards were fully taken up with their exploits in the south, 
and had no leisure for exploring the country where there were 
no gold mines and no great empires or cities to be conquered. 



30 EUROFEAN SETTLEMENTS IN AI\rERICA. [chap. 

8. Character of the Spanish Conquests. — Conquests like 
these could not be accomplished without great suffering 
to the natives. For though it was some time before the 
Spanish government openly and professedly allowed the 
Indians to be used as slaves, and though it never gave 
the settlers full liberty to do as they pie ised with them, 
yet in most of the colonies the natives were from the very 
beginning completely at the mercy of the Spaniards. Ten 
years after the discovery of Hispaniola the natives began 
to decrease so in numbers that the settlers found it necessary 
to import slaves from other islands. For they were set to 
work in the mines and the fields in a manner for which they 
were wholly unfit. Without going through all the sufferings 
inflicted on them, we may form some idea of what they 
underwent from the fact that many killed themselves, as the 
only means of escaping their tormentors. But though the 
sufferings of the Indians were so great as fully to outweigh 
any good that was done by the conquest, we must not be 
too ready to blame the whole Spanish nation. For the men 
who went to the Spanish settlements were the very dregs, 
not only of Spain, but of almost every country in Europe, 
who flocked thither in quest of adventure and gain. And 
we must not think that this tyranny was any special wicked- 
ness peculiar to the Spaniards. For from none of the 
settlers did the natives suffer more than from a colony of 
Germans, to whom the King of Spain had given a grant 
of land in America. And there was at least one class of 
Spaniards who were not merely free from blame in this 
matter, but deserve the highest praise. For all that could 
be done to protect the natives and to bring their grievances 
before the government in Spain, and to improve tlieir condi- 
tion in every way, was done by the clergy. It is scarcely too 
much to say that no class of men ever suffered so much and 
toiled so unsparinj'ly for the good of their fellow-creatures 



II.] CHARACTER OF THE SPANISH CONQUESTS. 31 

as the Spanish priests and missionaries in America. I'he 
Spanish government too strove to protect the natives, and 
not wholly without success. But Spain was at that time 
completely taken up with European affairs, and had not 
leisure enough for a subject of such importance and difficulty. 
For there could not be a harder task than to restrain such 
men as the conquerors of Mexico and Peru. They wtre for 
the most part reckless men, and their success had increased 
their confidence, and everyone of them felt that Spain owed 
him a debt greater than she could ever pay, and most of 
them were ready to rebel at the least provocation. On various 
occasions the Spanish government sent out orders strictly 
forbidding the enslavement of the natives, but was obliged 
either to withdraw or relax this rule for fear of a rebellion 
among the settlers. Another great source of mischief was 
that one cruel or treacherous act would make the inhabitants 
of a whole district enemies to all strangers, and so introduce 
war, which was always the forerunner of slavery and oppres- 
sion. Thus one unprincipled man could do an -amount of 
evil which no wisdom or moderation afterwards could repair. 
V/hat lay at the root of all this evil was the great rapidity 
Avith which the conquest was carried out. For there are few 
tasks which need more experience and forethought than the 
government of a newly-conquered country. Without a care- 
ful study of the people, and knowledge of their habits and 
ideas, such a task is a hopeless one. Yet here the Spaniards 
were suddenly called on to govern a vast country, whose very 
existence they had not dreamed of forty years before. This 
was due chiefly to the great riches of the natives, and to 
their weakness. For if Mexico and Peru had either had less 
wealth to tempt invaders, or if their spoils had been less easy 
to win, the conquest would in all probability have been far 
slower and more gradual. In that case the Spaniards would 
hare been able to learn more about the people with whom 



32 EUIWPEA.Y SETTLEMENTS IN AMERICA, [chap. 

they were dealing, and would have had more sympathy with 
them. Then probably the conquest of Mexico would have 
been done bit by bit, like the English conquest of India, and 
although it might have been attended by much evil, it would 
have had many good results too, instead of being, as it vvas, 
almost an unmixed curse both to the conquerors and the 
conquered. 

9. The Early English Voyagers.— While all these things 
^vcre being done, it seemed as if- England was not about 
to take any part in the settlement of the New World. 
Only one or two voyages had been made ihithcr, and 
these had been so disastrous that there was very little en- 
couragement to others to follow. In 1527 one Albert de 
Prado, a foreign priest living in England, sailed out with 
two ships. We know that the voyagers reached Newfound- 
land, since letters still exist sent home thence by them ; but 
after that nothing more is known of them. In 1536 another 
expedition set out, commanded by one Hore, a gentleman of 
London. This voyage is somewhat remarkable, not for 
anything that was accomplished, but because it seems to 
have been the first of any im.portance that Englishmen 
undertook entirely without foreign help. Landing far north, 
they suffered great hardships, and were on the very point of 
killing and eating one of their own number, but were saved 
by the appearance of a French ship well victualled. This 
they seized, and so returned to England. Such a voyage was 
not likely to encourage Englishmen to pursue adventure in 
America, and for some time we hear of no more attempts. 
But in the meantime a great deal was being done towards 
fitting England to play her part in the settlement of America, 
During the past eighty years trade had increased greatly, as 
is shown by the number of commercial treaties with foreign 
towns, and of corporations of English merchants in many of 
the great European cities, and foreign trade was almost sure 



n.] THE EARLY ENGLISH VOYAGERS. 33 

to bring the pursuit of navigation with it. Moreover, Henry 
VIII. did a great deal to further this. For though his mis- 
deeds in other ways were very great, yet, when his passions 
did not lead him astray, he was a wise king, and one that 
sought the good of his country ; and he clearly saw that the 
strength of England must lie in her ships. And all those 
great deeds that were done by Englishmen in the reign of 
his daughter Elizabeth, both on the seas and in distant lands, 
were in a great measure due to Henry's energy and foresight. 
For he not only built large ships, but he saw that ships, 
however good, would be useless v»'ithout skilled seamen ; and 
be founded three colleges on the model of one that already 
existed in Spain to train up pilots and sailors. Though this 
bore no great fruit in bis life-time, the good of it was seen 
in the next generation ; for in 1549, in the reign of Henry's 
son Edward, Sebastian Cabot, who, as we have teen, was the 
first great English navigator, was made Grand Pilot of Eng. 
land, and planned great enterprises. English ships soon be- 
gan to sail in every quarter, and P2ngland became as great on 
the sea as either Portugal or Spain. Voyages were made to 
Guinea to trade in gold and precious stones, and unhappily 
too in negro slaves. And great discoveries were made in 
the northern seas. For English ships sailed round the 
northern point of Norway and to Archangel, and Englishmen 
travelled by this way to the Russian court at Moscow, and 
even to Persia. But as yet nothing was done in the directi-on 
of America. When at last a voyage was made thither, it 
was rather by chance than by design. For, in 1576, Martin 
Frobisher, a west-country sea captain, sailed northward, 
thinking to find a passage to Asia round the northern coast 
of America. He did not, however, get further than that 
gulf to the north of La"brador called Frobisher Straits. But 
though he failed in his main object, he brought back what 
was more valued than even a passage to Asia would have 



34 EUROPEAN SETTLEMENTS IN AMERICA, [chap. 

been. A stone which he had found was reported to con- 
tain gold. The stories of the Spanish conquest had set 
England, like all the rest of Europe, mad after gold ; and 
immediately a company was formed to explore the supposed 
gold country, Frobisher was sent out again, and came back 
with a great cargo of what was believed to be ore. Queen 
Elizabeth then took up the scheme.- A third and larger expe- 
dition was sent out in fifteen ships, and it was arranged that 
a hundred men should be left there to form a settlement. 
In the arrangements for this voyage a mistake was made, 
which was often repeated afterwards, and which was a serious 
hindrance to the success, not only of the English colonies, 
but those of other nations. It was thought that men who 
were unfit to live at home would do for colonists, and ac- 
cordingly a number of condemned criminals were sent out. 
The expedition was an utter failure ; the sailors almost 
mutinied ; one of the ships with provisions for the colony 
deserted, and it was found hopeless to attempt a settlement. 
The fleet was loaded with ore, and sailed home. The ore 
proved worthless, and the whole attempt resulted in utter 
failure and disappointment to all concerned. 

lo. Raids on the Spanish Colonies. — By this time there 
was a fresh motive for English voyages to America. From 
the beginning of Elizabeth's reign many Englishmen of good 
family had sailed the seas as pirates, especially attacking 
Spanish ships. And as English seamen grew more skilful, 
they ventured to harass the Spanish settlements on the 
coast of America, and to cut off the Spanish fleets as they 
came and went. Though many of the greatest and bravest 
Englishmen of that day took part in these voyages, it is 
impossible to justify them. Yet there was this much to be 
said in excuse, that the Spanish Inquisition not unfrequently 
seized Englishmen on Spanish soil, and punished them for 
no crime but their religion. It must be^ remembered too 



II.] GILBERT'S VOYAGE. 35 

that the pope, who was the close ally of Spain, was ever 
hatching conspiracies against the Queen of England, and 
striving to stir up civil wars there, and it could hardly seem a 
crime to Englishmen to annoy and weaken Spain even by 
unlawful means. Thus there was much fighting between 
Englishmen and Spaniards on the seas, and on the America:! 
coast, though the countries were not avowedly at war. 

II. Gilbert's Voyage, — In 1578, Sir Humphrey Gilbert, a 
west-country gentleman of great learning and wisdom, seems 
to have bethought him of a scheme for injuring Spain by plant- 
ing an English setilement on the coast of America to serve as 
a sort of outpost from which to attack the Spanish fleets. It 
is not cjuite certain that Gilbert was the author of this scheme, 
but there is great likelihood of it ; and it is certain that after 
this time he got a patent, granting him leave to form a 
colony in America. He does not seem however to Lave 
been as skilful in carrying out his designs as in planning 
them, and this expedition, though sent out at great cost, was 
a complete failure and he himself a heavy loser. Four years 
later he renewed his attempt ; this time he was somewhat 
more successful. For though one of his ships deserted 
him at the very outset, he reached America, landed on the 
coast of Newfoundland, and took possession of the country 
in the Queen's name. He made no further attempt at a 
settlement, partly from the character of his men, who were 
lawless and disorderly, and thought only of getting on 
and making attempts at piracy. Before long another ship 
deserted and reduced the fleet to three, and of these one was 
wrecked with a load of ore thought to contain gold. Last of all, 
the smallest vessel, the Sqjdrrcl, of only ten tons, in which 
Gilbert himself sailed, went down, and one ship alone made 
its way back to England. Though Gilbert's attempt ended 
in utter failure, yet his name should ever be held in honour 
as the man who led the way in the English settlement of 

D 2 



36 EUROPEAN SETTLEMENTS IN AAIERICA. [chap. 

America, and who forfeited his Hfe in that cause from which 
his countrymen afterwards gained such honour and reward. 

12. Raleigh's first Colony. — Gilbert's scheme was taken 
up by a man* fitter for such a task. His half-brother, .Sir 
Walter Raleigh, was probably the greatest Enghshman in an 
age unusually rich in great men. There certainly have been 
many better men, and there have been men too who were 
greater in one special way. But there scarcely ever has 
been anyone equally distinguished in so many different 
ways. Of the various cai-eers open to a man in that day 
— learning, war, statesmanship, navigation — Raleigh pur- 
sued all, and excelled in all. As colonization was one 
of the great undertakings possible in that age, Raleigh 
entered upon that. There he showed his wisdom beyond all 
who had gone before him. Except perhaps the French 
settlers in Florida, no one there had thought of planting 
settlements save with an eye to gold and silver ; for 
Gilbert's was hardly so much a regular settlement as an 
outpost against Spain. But Raleigh, though he probably had 
mines in view, yet took care to settle his colony where it 
might maintain itself by agriculture, and enrich both itself 
and England by manufacture and trade. In 1584 he obtained 
a patent in precisely the same terms as Gilbert's, and sent 
out two sea captains, Amidas and Barlow, to explore. They 
landed much further south than Gilbert, where climate and 
soil were both better. The natives received them with great 
kindness and hospitality, and two accompanied them back to 
England. Amidas and Barlow brought home a glowing 
account of the land they had found, and the Queen named it 
Virginia. Next year Raleigh sent out a hundred and eight 
settlers. Sir Richard Grcnville, one of the greatest sea cap- 
tains of the age, was in command of the fleet. But he was only 
to see them established, and then to leave them under the com- 
mand of Ralph Lane, a soldier of some note. Heriot,a friend 



IT.] EALEIGirs FIRST COLONY. 37 

of Raleigh, and a man of great scicntiFc learning, was sent out 
to examine the country. The colony was established in an 
island called Roanoke, off what is new the coast of Noith 
Carolina. At the very outset a mishap occurred which after- 
wards did no small harm to the settlement. As Grenville was 
exploring the country, an Indian stole a silver cup from the 
English. In revenge Grenville, who seems to have been of 
a severe and somewhat cruel temper, burnt an Indian village. 
Up to this time the Indians had appeared friendly, but hence- 
forth the settlers had to be on their guard. In August, Grenville 
sailed home, leaving Lane in full command. Instead of 
getting his settlement into good order and making arrange- 
ments for building houses, growing corn, and the like, Lane 
almost at once set off with a party in quest of mines. They 
suffered great hardships, and, after being driven by lack of 
food to eat their dogs, at length returned without having 
made any discovery. Lane on his return found his settlement 
in great danger. The Indians, emboldened by his absence, 
were plotting against the colony, and would have assailed them 
unawares, had not one more friendly than the rest disclosed 
the plot to Lane. Though not a very wise governor. Lane was 
a bold and able soldier. He at once fell upon the Indians, 
killing fifteen of them, and thereby prevented an attack. But 
though the settlers were saved from immediate danger, their 
prospects were very g'oomy. They were suffering from lack 
of food ; the Indians we.e no longer their friends, and they 
began to fear that Grenvilb, who was to have brought them 
s pplies, would not return. While they were in these diffi- 
culties, an English fleet appeared on its way back from a raid 
on the Spanish coast. Drake, the commander of the fleet, 
fitted out a ship for the settlers with a hundred men and pro- 
visions for six months, but just as it was ready a storm arose, 
and it was driven out to sea. Another attempt was made to 
send a ship to their relief, but the harbourage was insufficient 



38 EUROPEAN SETTLEMENTS IN AMERICA, [chap. 

and the attempt was given up. At last the settlers in despair 
resolved to embark in Drake's fleet, and by the end of J uly, 
1586, they landed in Portsmouth. A few days after they had 
sailed, a ship reached Virginia, sent out by Raleigh with pro- 
visions. After searching in vain for the settlers, it returned 
fo England. About a fortnight later, Grenville arrived with 
three ships well provisioned. Having spent some time in 
seeking for the settlement he landed fifteen men with supplies 
for two years, to keep possession of the country, and sailed 
home. The small colony was destroyed by the Indians. 

13. Raleigh's second Colony. — All these disappointments 
did not withhold Raleigh from another and more determined 
attempt. In 1587 he sent out a fresh party of settlers. One 
White was to be governor, with a council of twelve assistants, 
and the settlement was to be called the City of Raleigh. 
Hitherto the Indians had received the English in friend- 
ship, but now they attacked the settlers at their first land- 
ing, and killed one of the assistants. In August two note- 
worthy events occurred : Manteo, one of the natives who 
had returned with Amidns and Barlow, was christened ; and 
the wife of Henry Dnre bore a daughter, th."^ first child 
of English pr>.rents born in the New World. Soon after 
this, White went to England to get supplies. Raleigh im- 
mediately fitted out a fleet under the command of (irenville. 
Before it could sail, tidings came that the Spanish Armada 
was ready to attack England, and every ship and sailor that 
could be put on the sea was needed. Nevertheless Raleigh 
contrived to send out White with two small vessels. But 
instead of relieving the colony, the crew betook thmselves to 
piracy against the Spaniards, and, after sundry mishaps, 
returned to England without ever having reached Virginia. 
Baleigh had now spent 40,000/. on his Virginia colony, and 
had got absolutely nothing in return. Moreover, he had just 
got a large grant of land in Ireland, and needed all his 



II.] RALEIGIPS SECOND COLONY, 39 

spare time and money for that. Accordingly in March 1589 
he" sold all his rights in the Virginia plantation to a company. 
At the same time he showed his interest in the colony by a 
gift of 100/. to be spent in the conversion of the natives. 
The new company was slow in sending out relief, and nothing 
was done till late in that year. White then sailed with three 
ships. This fleet repeated the same folly which had undone 
the last expedition, and went plundering among the Spanish 
islands. At last, after much delay, White reached Virginia. 
The settlers had left the spot where White had placed them, 
and as had been agreed, they had cut upon a tree the name 
of the place, Croatan, whither they had gone. There some 
traces of their goods were seen, but they themselves could 
not be found anywhere. Though Raleigh had no longer any 
share in the settlement, he did not cease to take an interest 
in it, j.nd sent out at least two more expeditions, one as late 
as 1602, in the bare hope of recovering the colonists, or at 
least of getting some tidings of them. A vague rumour was 
afterwards heard that some of them had been taken prisoners 
by the Indians and kept as slaves, but nothing certain was 
ever known of them from the day that White left America 
in 1587. 

14. Prospects of English Colonization. — Thus, by the end 
of the sixteenth century, Spain had on each coast of America 
a territory some thousands of miles in length, with large 
and beautiful cities, and yielding in gold and silver alone 
more than 60,000/ a year, while England had not so much 
as a single fishing-village. Yet the last fifty years had done 
much towards training Englishmen for the task of coloniza- 
tion. They had learnt familiarity with the sea and with dis- 
tant lands, and they had discovered that the Spaniards were 
not, as they had once seemed, invincible. The men who had 
conquered the Armada, and had even plundered Spanish ships 
and towns on the American coast, felt that they could sur- 



40 VIRGINIA. [CHAP. 

mount difficulties which had not baffled Cortez and Pizarro, 
Englishmen in the sixteenth century did not establish a single 
lasting settlement in America, but they did much toward 
showing how America might be explored and colonized by 
the next generation. 



CHAPTER III. 

VIRGINIA. 

Need for colonization in England {l)~the Virginia company (2) 
— the first colony (3) — change in the company (4) — Dale as 
govei'nor {t,)— state of the colony {6)—Yeardley and Argali 
governors (7) — the massacre (8) — dissolution of the company 
(9) — the colony under Charles I. (10) — the Commoniccalth 
(ll) — the Restoration (12) — scattered mode of life (13) — 
Bacon's rebellion (14) — the Revolution (15). 

I. Need for Colonization in England. — After the failure 
of White's expedition, no further attempt at settlement 
was made for eighteen years. Gradually however new 
causes arose to make colonization important. Hitherto 
distant settlements had been planned chiefly to enrich the 
mother country by mines and trade, or to molest the 
Spanish colonies. But now men began to see that the 
newly discovered lands might be valuable as a home for 
those who could find neither work nor means of livelihood 
in England. The beginning of the seventeenth century was 
a time when this need was specially felt. . During the four- 
teenth and fifteenth centuries there had been great pesti- 
lences and famines, which had kept^own the numbers of the 
people, and, except during special times of scarcity, there 
had been no lack of food. But during the sixteenth century 



III.] NEED FOR COLONIZATION IN ENGLAND. 41 

the population had increased greatly, and there was neither 
•work nor wages enough for all. Two things especially- 
had helped to cause this. Wool trade and sheep farm- 
ing had greatly increased, and much land which was for- 
merly tilled had been turned into pasture, and thus many 
labourers had been thrown out of work. Besides, the break- 
ing up of religious houses by Henry VIII. had cut off an- 
other means whereby many were maintained. Thus the land 
was full of needy and idle men ready for any ill deed. In this 
strait men began to think of the rich and uninhabited lands 
beyond the sea as offering a home for those who could find 
none in England. In one way, the prospects of colonization 
might seem changed for the worse. Elizabeth, who was now 
dead, had always looked oh all distant adventures with 
favour, and honoured and encouraged those who undertook 
them. But her successor, James, was of a timid temper, and 
had no pleasure in such things, but rather distrusted them as 
likely to strengthen the free spirit of his subjects. Moreover, 
he was specially attached to Spain, and valued its friendship 
beyond that of any other country. And as the Spaniards 
always did their utmost to keep any other nation from 
settling in America, they would not fail to prejudice James 
against such attempts. One thing, however, helped to re- 
concile him to schemes for colonization. It was understood 
from the first that the colonies wei-e entirely under the 
control of the King and Privy Council, jind that Parliament 
had no power of interfering in their concerns. As might be 
expected with this difference in the temper of the sovereign, 
the spirit of the nation, or at least of the leading men in the 
nation, was somewhat changed too. There were no longer 
men like Frobisher, and Gilbert, and Grenville, who loved 
adventure for its own sake, and readily undertook long and 
costly voyages and risked great dangers, for distant and 
uncertain hopes of gain. In reality however this change 



42 VIRGINIA. [chap. 

was favourable to colonization. For it was the love of 
adventure and the desire to achieve some brilliant success 
by discovering mines or unknown seas, or by piracy against 
the Spaniards, which caused the failure of all the early 
attempts. So that settlements made with soberer views, 
though they might not be undertaken so eagerly or promise 
such brilliant results, were more likely to enjoy lasting 
success. 

2. The Virginia Company. — In 1602 and the three follow- 
ing years voyages of discovery were sent out. The coast of 
America to the north of Chesapeake Bay was explored, and 
a favourable report brought back. The failures of Gilbert and 
Raleigh showed that a colony was too great an undertaking 
for a single man to carry out successfully. The northern 
expeditions in the previous century sent out by the Russian 
Company had been more prosperous. Accordingly in 1606 
a company was formed for the establishment of two settle- 
ments in America.. The Northern colony was to be managed 
by gentlemen and merchants from the west of England ; 
the Southern by Londoners. A charter was obtained from 
the King granting to each a tract on the coast at whatever 
spot it chose to settle, the Northern colony between 34 
and 41 degrees of latitude, the Southern between 38 and 45. 
At the same time it was provided that the colonies were to be 
lOD miles apart. Each was to have a tract of 50 miles along 
the coast on each side of the settlement, and all islands 
within 100 miles of the coast ; and no other English colony 
was to be founded on the mainland behind them without 
express permission. Each was to be governed by a Presi- 
dent and Council of thirteen in America, while these were 
to be under the control of a Council in England. ' The 
members of these Councils and the two Presidents were 
to be appointed by the King. At the same time James drew 
up certain articles for the government of the colonies. AIJ 



Ill] rilE FIRST COLONY. 43 

criminal cases involving life and death were to be tried 
by a jury ; smaller offences by the President. The President 
and Council of each colony had power to make ordinances ; 
but these must agree with the laws of England, and were 
not to become law till approved of by the Sovereign or 
the Council at home. The Sovereign was also to issue 
such orders as from time to time should seem desirable. 
There was to be no private industry in the colony for the 
first five years, but the settlers were to bring all the fruit 
of their labour into a common store, whence food and other 
necessaries would be provided in return. 

3. The first Colony. — December 19, 1606, the Southern 
colony set out. Three ships sailed with one hundred and 
five emigrants. By an ill-judged arrangement, the list of 
the Council was not to be opened till they landed. The 
Council was then to elect a Governor. Thus during the 
voyage there was no one with regular and settled author- 
ity. Among the colonists was one John Smith, an Eng- 
lish yeoman by birth, who had spent his life as a soldier 
of fortune. Europe in that age swarmed with adventurers, 
but few of them had gone through so many strange chances 
as this man. He had served in the Low Countries ; he had 
been captured by Barbary pirates ; he had fought against the 
Turks in Hungary ; he was left for dead on the battle-field ; 
he then escaped from a Turkish prison jnto Russia, and at 
length returned to England. Such a man was likely enough 
to be of an unquiet temper, and before the fleet had been out 
six weeks he was confined on suspicion of mutiny. On the 
26th of April the colonists landed in Chesapeake Bay and 
founded a settlement, which they called Jamestown. The 
Council then elected Wingfield to be President. He was a 
man of good birth and some military experience, but proud 
and self-willed, and indifferent to the friendship and esteem 
of those under him. Everything now went wrong. The 



VIRGINIA. [ciiAr. 



settlers themselves were idle and thriftless, and would not 
work as long as the supplies which they brought out lasted. 
Moreover, they found some earth which they fancied con- 
tained gold, and all their time was spent in working at this. 
The natives were friendly, but Newport, the captain of the 
ships, by his foolish liberality to the Indian king, Powhatan, 
made him hold the English goods cheap, and so prevented the 
settlers from buying corn as easily as they might have done. 
But for Smith's energy the colony could hardly have existed. 
He cruised about the coast and explored the country, either 
conciliating or overawing the natives, and getting abundant 
supplies of corn from them. As might have been expected, 
Smith and Wingfield soon quarrelled. We have only the 
accounts of this affair written by each of them, so it is hard 
to tell the rights of the case. Wingfield however himself 
admitted the great services done by Smith to the colony, 
and we find Smith long afterwards enjoying the favour and 
confidence of men connected with Virginia. The quarrel 
ended by Wingfield being deposed. Smith did not at once 
become President, but he was practically the head of the 
colony. For a short time things went on better. The 
settlers built twenty houses, sowed some ground, set up a 
regular factory for trade with the Indians, and made some 
tar and other merchandise. But soon they fell back into 
their old state. Sq badly off were they for food, that they 
were forced to break up into three bodies and settle in dif- 
ferent parts. Some even ran off to the Indians and lived 
among them. 

4. Change in the Company. — In spite of the evil tidings 
which came from the colony, and the disappointment of 
all their hopes of gain, the company in England were not 
discouraged. In 1609, a new charter transferred to the com- 
pany the powers of legislation and government which had by 
the first charter been reserved to the Crown. The Supreme 



ni.] CHANGE W THE COMPANY. 45 

Council in England was to be elected by the stockholders 
themselves. The Governor of the Colony became the diiect 
representative of the company, exercising almost unlimited 
powers under the laws and instructions of the Council, or at 
his discretion in the absence of instructions, even in capital 
cases. The company now included many of the greatest men 
of the age ; amongst others, the philosopher Lord Bacon, 
and most of the great London trading companies held shares 
in it. The new company at once sent out an expedition on a 
larger scale than the last. Nine ships sailed with five hundred 
settlers, under the command of Sir Thomas Gates, an expe- 
rienced soldier, who had distinguished himself in the Low 
Countries, and Sir George Somers, one of the bravest of the 
American adventurers in the days of Elizabeth. Lord Dela- 
ware was appointed Governor of the colony, and was to follow 
soon after. Unluckily, before the fleet reached Virginia, the 
ship in which Gates and Somers sailed got separated from the 
rest and was cast by a storm on the Bermuda islands. Thus 
the new colonists arrived without any proper head. The 
state of the colony now was worse than ever. The new 
settlers were for the most part the very scum of the earth : 
men sent out to the New World because they were unfit to 
live in the Old. They were idle and mutinous, and utterly 
despised Smith's authority. West, Lord Delaware's brother, 
whose position might have given him some authority over 
them, fell sick, and to crown their misfortunes. Smith met 
with an accident which obliged him to return to England. 
The Indians did not actually attack them, but they were 
known to be plotting against the colony. While things were 
in this state, Gates and Somers arrived in a pinnace which 
they had built in the Bermudas with their own hands. The 
state of the colony seemed so desperate that they determined 
to break it up and return, with all the settlers, to England. 
It seemed as if this attempt would end, like Raleigh's, in 



46 VIRGINIA.^ [CHAP. 

uttei- failure. But just as they were all embarked, Lord 
Delaware arrived with three ships well supplied. He at once 
resettled the colony, and forced the colonists to till the ground 
and fortify the settlement against the Indians. From this 
time the history of Virginia as a settled country may be con- 
sidered to begin. 

5. Dale as Governor. — Lord Delaware did not stay long in 
the colony, but left it under the government of Sir Thomas 
Dale, who, like Gates, had served as a soldier in the Nether- 
lands. He was an able but a stern ruler. He enforced a 
code of laws copied in many points from the military laws 
of the Low Countries, so severe that it is wonderful how any 
community ever endured them. A few of the harshest will 
serve as specimens. A man was to be put to death for 
killing any cattle, even his own, without leave of the 
Governor; so was anyone who exported goods without leave. 
A baker who gave short weight was to lose his ears, and on 
the third offence to be put to death. A laundress who stole 
linen was to be flogged. Attendance at public worship was 
enforced by severe penalties. We must not forget however 
that most of the colonists were no better than criminals; 
indeed the colony had got so evil a name in England by 
its disorders and misadventures that few respectable men 
would go out. 

6. State of the Colony. — The settlers were of various 
classes : all who subscribed 12/. Xx>s. to the company, or sent 
out a labourer at their own expense, got shares of land, at 
first a hundred acres, afterwards, as the colony improved, 
fifty acres each. These farmed their land cither by their 
own labour or by hired servants, and formed the class after- 
wards called planters. But the greatest part of the land 
was in the hands, not of private persons, but of the company 
itself. This was cultivated by public servants who had 
been sent out at the company's expense, and who were in 



III.] STATE OF THE COLONY. 47 

great part maintained out of a public store, but were also 
allowed each a patch of ground of his own, upon which 
to support himself. Some of these public servants were 
employed in handicrafts and in producing commodities to 
send home. Moreover, men of special skill, public officers, 
clergymen, physicians, and the like, were maintained at the 
company's cost in return for their services. Under the 
government of Dale the condition of the colony improved. 
One important tribe of Indians, the Chickahominies, made a 
league with the settlers, and in return for some small presents 
of hatchets and red cloth, acknowledged themselves English 
subjects, and undertook to pay a yearly tribute of corn. The 
chief body of the Indians, under a great and powerful chief, 
Powhatan, were also closely allied with the English. In 16 12, 
one Captain Argall, an unscrupulous man with influence 
in the company, by a knavish scheme with Japa:aus, an 
Indian chief, kidnapped Pocahontas, the favourite daughter 
of Powhatan. During her captivity among the English she 
became converted to Christianity and married John Rolfe, a 
leading man among the settlers. Thus from the affair which 
seemed at one time likely to embroil the colony with the 
Indians came a friendship which lasted as long as Powhatan 
lived. 

7. Yeardley and Argall Governors. — The next year Dale 
departed. The settlers showed that they needed his strong 
hand over them by fallin* at once into idleness and im- 
providence. The new Governor, Yeardley, was an upright 
man, just and humane in his dealings both with the settlers 
and the natives, but wanting in energy. One great source 
of mischief which Dale had hardly been able to keep in 
check was the excessive planting of tobacco. This crop 
was so profitable that the colonists gave all their time and 
ground to it, and neglected the needful cultivation of corn. 
Meanwhile the aftairs of the company at home were mis- 



48 VIRGINIA. [CHAP. 

managed. The treasurer, Sir Thomas Smith, was either 
negligent or dishonest. Emigrants were sent out utterly 
unprovided with necessaries, and the supplies forwarded to 
the colonists were almost worthless. Under Yeardley's suc- 
cessor, Argall, matters were yet worse. He plundered both 
the company and the colonists in every way that he could. 
He took the stores, the servants, and the ships of the com- 
pany for his own private profit and use. Under his rule 
the state of the colony became utterly wretched. Though 
more than a thousand persons had been sent thither, less 
than six hundred were left. At one place, Henrico, where 
there had been forty settlers, there was left but one house, 
and at Jamestown there were but ten or twelve. The con- 
dition of the private planters seems to have been better, 
and it was most likely this which encouraged the company to 
persevere and to make one more attempt to bring the colony 
to a prosperous condition. In i6i8, a change was made in 
the company ; Sir Thomas Smith was deposed from the 
treasurership, and in his place Sir Edwin Sandys appointed. 
He was an able and upright man, and a leading member of 
the party that was beginning to resist the arbitrary policy 
of the King in political and religious matters. Side by side 
with this a change of even greater and more lasting import- 
ance was made in the colony itself. Argall was deposed 
and Yeardley sent out in his place. His first act, no doubt 
by the wish of the company, was to form an independent 
legislature in Virginia. He called an Assembly almost 
exactly modelled after the English parliament. It consisted 
of the Council and a body of representatives, two from each 
of the eleven plantations into which the colony was divided. 
These representatives were elected by the freeholders. The 
Assembly so formed imposed taxes, considered petitions, and 
passed several laws for the management of the colony. 
From this time the Assembly met, if not every year, at least 



in.] THE MASSACRE. 49 

at frequent intervals, and the Virginians, though nominally- 
dependent on the King and the Company, had in most things 
an independent government of their own. 

8. The Massacre. — Under the new system the colony 
grew and flourished ; vines were planted, and manufactories 
of iron and glass w^ere set on foot. Guest-houses were built, 
in spots carefully chosen for healthfulness, for the emigrants 
when first they landed. The company exerted itself to 
supply the colony with clergymen and schoolmasters ; busi- 
ness so increased that it was necessary to have law courts 
in the different plantations. But the growing prosperity of 
the colony Avas soon cruelly checked. From various causes 
the settlers lived for the most part, not in villages, but in 
single houses, each with its own farm about it. This was 
due partly to the system which gave every shareholder a 
hundred acres of ground for each share, so that many of 
the planters owned large estates ; and partly too to the fact 
that the country was full of navigable rivers, so that travel- 
ling was very easy, and the inconvenience of separation little 
felt. The colony was thus more exposed to the Indians ; but 
that danger was little feared, since the relations between 
them and the settlers seemed thoroughly friendly. The 
Indians came and went among the English, and were 
allowed to go in and out of their houses as they pleased. 
Many benevolent schemes had been proposed for convert- 
ing and training up the Indian children. Unluckily for the 
English, Powhatan, who had ever been their fast friend, died 
in 1618. His successor, Opechancanough, was for some time 
suspected of enmity to the settlers. Yet they do not seem 
to have been in the least on their guard against an attack. 
In 1622 an Indian chief m.urdered an English planter, in 
revenge for which he was killed by two of the rjlanter's 
servants. This supplied Opechancanough with a pretext lor 
stirring up his people against the settlers. Till the very 



so VIRG/A'IA. [CHAP. 

moment that they were ready for the attack the Indians 
kept up every appearance of friendship, and then suddenly 
fell upon the settlers and murdered every one they could. 
Had it not been that one converted Indian gave warning to 
the English, few would have escaped. As it was, about 350 
perished. A few years before this would have been fatal, but 
the colony now numbered between 2,000 and 3,000. Public 
works were hindered, and the settlers were forced to abandon 
some of their outlying plantations and draw closer together, 
but the evil effects soon passed off. 

9. Dissolution of the Company. — An event even more 
important than the massacre was at hand. The King, 
though he granted such ample powers to the company, 
seems always to have looked on it with some jealousy. This 
was due, in a great measure, to the intrigues of Gondomar, 
the Spanish ambassador. For the Spaniards naturally 
dreaded the growth of English colonies in the New World, 
lest they should become as dangerous to the Spanish 
colonies as England had been to Spain in the Old World. 
Hence there was perpetual intriguing against the company, 
and Gondomar, who, by bribing right and left, had gained 
great influence in England, did all he could against it. 
As the leading men in the company were of that party who 
chiefly opposed the King, James was easily persuaded that 
the company was a training school for a seditious par- 
liament. Moreover, Sir Thomas Smith, who had been 
displaced from the office of treasurer, headed a disaffected 
party within the company, so that it was divided against 
itself, and got an ill name for squabbling and miscon- 
duct. Besides, the news of the massacre did much to make 
men think lightly of the colony and distrust its management. 
In the colony too there were disaffected and discontented 
people, who spoke evil of the company. But when the King 
sent out commissioners to inquire into the charges brought 



III.] THE COLOXY UNDER CHARLES I. 51 

against the company, all the serious accusations fell to the 
gi'ound. Nevertheless, the overthrow of the compiny was 
determined on, and in 1623 they were summoned by an order 
of the Privy Council to surrender their charter, in order that 
the m.anagement of the colony might be handed over to a 
Council appointed by the King. The company at once 
refused to yield. Accordingly a writ was issued against the 
company, called a writ of Quo warranto, by which any corpo- 
ration can be compelled to show good cause for its existence. 
At the same time they were deprived of the power of defend- 
ing themselves by the seizure of all their papers. The 
details of the trial, are not known, but the judges of that 
time were so subservient to the Court that any matter in 
which the King was known to take an interest was likely to be 
decided as he wished. Chief Justice Ley, who had- to decide 
the case, gave it against the company. Thus the Virginia 
Company came to an end after a career of sixteen years. 

Few corporations have in so short a time done so much 
good; for from the time that they were set free from the 
evil government of Sir Thomas Smith, they seem steadily 
to have sought the good cf the colony rather than their 
own gain. Yet in all probability Virginia gained by their 
dissolution, for under the King the colony was left to itself, 
and learnt independence and self-reliance, as it hardly could 
have done under the company. 

10. The Colony under Charles I. — The effect of the dis- 
solution was to leave the colony entirely dependent on the 
King. In May, i6;25, he issued a proclamation settling 
the condition of Virginia. It was to be governed by two 
Councils, one in England and the other in Virginia, both to 
be appointed by the King, and by a Governor also appointed 
by the King, The colonists had no charter, and no security 
of any kind against arbitrary government. Practically how- 
ever things went on as before. The Assembly met every year, 

E 2 



S3 VIRGhVIA. [chap. 

and enacted measures, which were then sent to England 
and, if approved of by the King, became laws. The Go- 
vernor and all the chief officials received fixed salaries, so 
that they were in no way dependent on the Assembly. 
In general matters the colony seems to have prospered 
under the new system. By 1629 the number of settlers had 
increased, in spite of the massacre, to more than four thou- 
sand. Timber and iron were exported, and there seemed 
a likeHhood of vines being successfully cultivated. The 
damage done by the massacre was soon repaired and friend- 
ship with the Indians restored. In 1635, a dispute arose 
with the neighbouring colony, Maryland, recently settled by 
Lord Baltimore. Harvey, the Governor of Virginia, took 
part with Lord Baltimore against the Virginians. Enraged 
at this, the people rose against Harvey, arrested him, and 
sent him to England. He however defended himself suc- 
cessfully from the charges brought against him, and was 
restored. In 1639 proposals were set on foot in England for 
restoring the company, but these came to nothing, chiefly 
through the opposition offered by the colonists. They no 
doubt found that they enjoyed greater independence under 
the King, and feared that the restoration of the company 
would revive old claims to land, and thus cause confusion. 

II. The Commonwealth. — When the civil war broke out 
in England, it seemed at first as if Virginia would be a 
stronghold of the Royalists. Berkeley, the successor of 
Harvey, was a staunch partisan of the King, and so were 
many of the chief inhabitants. During the supremacy of 
the Commonwealth the colonies were placed under the 
government of a special Commission, with the Earl of War- 
wick at its head. In October, 1649, nine months after the 
death of Charles I., the Virginian Assembly passed an Act 
making it high treason to speak disrespectfully of the late 
King, to defend his execution, or to question Charles II. 's 



111.] THE COMMONWEALTH. 53 

right to the crown. Nevertheless, as soon as a parliamentary 
fleet reached the colony, the Virginians at once surrendered. 
The parliamentary Commission granted moderate terms : the 
Governor and Council were allowed a year in which to 
dispose of their estates and leave the colony, and no one was 
to be punished for any act or word on behalf of the King. 
The supremacy of Parliament does not seem in any way to 
have altered the condition of the colony at the time. It had 
however one very important and lasting effect. Hitherto it 
had been an acknowledged principle of law that Parliament 
had no control over the colonies. In 1624 the House of 
Commons had attempted to interfere on behalf of the 
Virginia Company, but were forbidden by the King to 
proceed further in the matter. They murmured, but gave 
way. In 1628 they sent a petition to the King on behalf of 
the Bermudas. But in this they fully acknowledged that the 
entire government of the colonies ought to be in the hands 
of the King. But after the death of the King Parliament 
had in a great measure assumed his rights and power, and so 
the government of the colonies naturally passed over to them. 
Thus it became an established principle that Acts of Par- 
liament were binding on the colonies in the same way as on 
the mother country, and after the Restoration this principle 
still remained in force. The chief enactment made by 
Parliament during the Commonwealth with reference to the 
colonies was that no goods should be carried to and from 
the colonies except in English or colonial ships. After the 
Restoration this was re-enacted, under the name of the Navi- 
gation Law. Its ( bject was to confine the colonial trade to 
England and to encourage English shipping. Another Act 
was passed, three years later, prohibiting the importation of 
foreign goods to the colonies, unless they had been first 
landed in England. To make up for these restrictions, the 
planting of tobacco in England was forbidden, and thus 



54 VIRGINIA. [CHAP. 

the colonists enjoyed a monopoly of the tobacco trade. 
The Navigation Law was not strictly enforced, and therefore 
did not press hardly on the colonies. Nevertheless, it esta- 
blished the principle that Acts of Parliament were binding 
on the colonies, although their inhabitants had no voice in 
electing Parliament, and very little power of making their 
wants known to it. 

12. The Restoration. — The Restoration caused as little 
stir in Virginia as the overthrow of the monarchy had done. 
No attempt was made to resist it, and Berkeley was quietly 
reinstalled as Governor. The colony seems about this time 
to have reached its. most prosperous state. The number 
of inhabitants had increased to forty thousand ; of these, two 
thousand were negro slaves. Besides these there were many 
English convicts, who were condemned to serve as slaves 
for a certain time. Most of these were prisoners who had 
been sentenced to death, but whose punishment had been 
changed by special favour to transportation. In spite of the 
existence of this class, the colony seems to have been very 
free from crime. Houses were left open at night, and clothes 
allowed to hang on hedges in safety. This was probably 
due to the comfort and plenty that prevailed. A single 
man could, by his own labour, raise two hundred and fifty 
bushels of Indian corn in a year. Cattle required no atten- 
tion, but were turned out into the woods and throve there. 
The forests swarmed with game, and the rivers with fish. Ever 
since 1643 the relations with the Indians had been friendly ; 
in that year war had broken out. The Indians were easily 
subdued ; Opechancanough was captured and put to death, 
and a firm peace made with his successor. For nearly thirty 
years from that time the peace remained unbroken. During 
this period, various laws were passed for the protection of 
the Indians. Efforts were made to convert and to teach 
their children, and the English tried to civilize them by 



in.] SCATTERED MODE OF LIFE. 55 

offering them cows as a reward for killing wolves. The 
colonists were forbidden by law to enslave the Indians or to 
buy land from them. In 1660, two settlers, men of high 
position, were fined fifteen thousand pounds of tobacco each, 
and were disqualified from holding any office in the colony, 
because they had unlawfully kept an Indian as a prisoner. 
At the same time another settler was disqualified in the 
same way, for cheating the Indians of some land. 

13. Scattered Mode of Life. — The worst evils from which 
the colony suffered were the want of towns and of educa- 
tion. The first of these was due to various causes : many 
of the settlers had been landed gentry, and had a taste 
for large estates and for a country Lfe. In the time of the 
company, there was no difficulty about acquiring large 
estates, since every share of 12/. \os. entitled the holder 
to fifty acres. After the dissolution of the company, the 
Government seems to have been careless in its grants of 
land, and many men acquired estates far larger than they 
could properly manage. The number of rivers, and the 
ease with which the settlers could transport themselves 
and their goods from one place to another, favoured this 
mode of life. The cultivation of tobacco and the use of 
slave labour also helped to bring this about. Slaves can 
seldom learn to cultivate more than one kind of crop ; and 
as tobacco exhausts the soil, it was necessary to be always 
taking fresh land into cultivation, and leaving that which had 
been already tilled to recover. Thus each planter needed 
far more land than he would have done under a more thrifty 
system. Various attempts were made to establish towns, but 
they came to nothing ; chiefly because everyone wanted to 
have the town wfthiii easy reach of his own plantation. Thus 
the Assembly, with whom the arrangement of these matters 
lay, could never fix on a site. The result of this want of 
towns was that there were neither schools nor printing 



56 VIRGINIA. [CHAP. 

presses, and that the people grew up for the most part utterly 
untaught. Moreover, the clergy, from whom some kind of 
training might have been expected, were for the most part 
ignorant men and of low station. 

14. Bacon's Rebellion. — About 1670 political discontent 
began to show itself. There were various causes for this : 
In 1655 a law had been passed restricting the right of 
voting at elections to landowners and householders, whereas 
before all freemen had voted. This law was repealed in 
the next year, on the ground that it was unfair that persons 
should pay taxes and yet have no votes. In 1670 the same 
law was again enacted. Besides this, the Governor had 
been gradually acquiring an undue share of power. It had 
been originally intended that the Council who were ap- 
pointed by the King should be a check upon the Governor. 
But the King depended mainly for his information as to 
the state of the colony on the Governor. The result of 
this was that the appointment of the Council came to be 
made in reality by the Governor ; and instead of being a 
check upon him, they were his supporters. The Clerk of the 
Assembly also found it to his interest to stand well with the 
Governor, and for this object kept him informed as to all the 
doings of the Assembly ; so that it was impossible for them 
to contrive any plan of action against the Governor without 
his hearing of it. As all the important public officers were 
appointed by the Governor, the whole control of affairs had 
passed into his hands, and as Berkeley was a man of harsh 
and arbitrary temper, this caused much discontent. Two 
things besides increased this feeling. In 1669 Charles II. 
granted the whole domain of Virginia to Lord Culpepper 
and Lord Arlington for thirty-one years. The chief fear was 
lest the new proprietors should claim land as unappropriated 
which had already been granted to private persons. As the 
grant gave them the right of appointing public surveyors, 



in.] BACON'S REBELLION. 57 

they were certain, of a favourable decision in any question of 
disputed boundaries. The Assembly took fright at this, and 
sent over three agents to England to remonstrate against the 
grant. This agency was a cause of public expense, and so 
did something to increase the existing discontent. Moreover, 
Berkeley had recently enforced the laws against Noncon- 
formists with severity, and many had been obliged to leave 
the colony, and probably many were left behind secretly 
disaffected. Thus everything was ready for a commotion, 
and it only needed some small event to set one on foot. In 
1675 a quarrel broke out between the settlers and two tribes of 
Indians, the Susquehannahs and the Doegs. These Indians 
stole some pigs to revenge themselves on one Matthews, a 
planter, who, as they said, had cheated them. The thieves 
were pursued, and some of them killed. The Indians then 
killed Matthews, his son, and two of his servants. Upon 
this, some planters, without authority from the Governor, got 
together a force, and besieged one of the Indian forts. The 
Indians then sent six of their chiefs to make proposals for 
peace, but the settlers in their anger fell upon them and 
slew them. This enraged the Indians yet more, and an irre- 
gular warfare was carried on, in which three hundred of the 
English perished. The settlers then besought Berkeley to 
send out a force, but he refused. Thereupon one Bacon, 
a n solute and able man whom misfortune had made reckless, 
went against the Indians without any commission from 
Berkeley. Five hundred men at once joined him. Berkeley 
thereupon proclaimed them rebels, and sent troops to arrest 
them. This only made Bacon's followers more obstinate, 
and at the election that autumn he was chos'fe as a member 
of the Assembly. When he came to Jamestown to take his 
seat, Berkeley at first opposed his entrance and tried to 
arrest him. Nevertheless, in a short time they were seemingly 
rcconcded. Possibly this was, as was afterwards thought, a 



58 VIRGTNTA. [chap. 

trick on Berkeley's part to get Bacon in his power. Various 
laws were then passed to remedy the abuses which had 
excited discontent. The right of voting was restored to all 
freemen, the fees of public offices were reduced, and Bacon 
was promised a commission against the Indians. But when 
the time came Berkeley refused to fulfil this promise. There- 
upon Bacon left Jamestown, and in a few days returned with 
500 followers. Berkeley now granted the commission, and 
Bacon marched against the Indians. News however soon 
reached him that Berkeley had raised a force and was 
coming to attack hnm. Bacon thereupon made his followers 
swear to be faithful to him, and, even if troops were sent 
against them from England, to resist till such time as their 
grievances could be laid before the King : he then marched 
against Berkeley, who fled. Bacon then burnt down James- 
town, lest his enemies should take shelter there, and pursued 
Berkeley. But before any engagement could take place 
Bacon fell sick and died. There was no one to take his 
place ; the rebel force fell to pieces, and was easily overcome. 
Berkeley used his victory mercilessly, putting rebels to death 
without due trial, and confiscating their estates before they 
were condemned. He was only stopped in these misdeeds 
by the arrival of three commissioners sent out by the King 
to inquire into the causes of the rebellion. Berkeley went to 
England, and died soon after, as was thought, of vexation. 
The rebellion was in one way a source of great loss to the 
colony. The agents who had been sent to England had 
just obtained from the King the promise of a charter, which 
amongst other privileges would have confined the right of 
levying taxes to the Assembly ; but in consequence of the 
rebellion this was withdrawn, and none of the grievances 
against which the agents protested were redressed. In one 
respect Bacon and his followers had been clearly blame- 
worthy ; in their undistinguishing rage against the Indians, 



III.] THE REVOLUTION. 59 

they had attacked a friendly tribe, and had driven their 
queen, who had been a faithful ally to the English, to flee into 
the vvoods at the risk of her life. Nevertheless, soon after 
Berkeley's departure a firm peace was made with all the 
Indians, and their relations with the settlers were thenceforth 
friendly. 

15. The Revolution. — Two Governors who came soon 
after, Lord Culpepper and Lord Effingham, governed the 
colony worse than any that had gone before them. Lord 
Culpepper came out in 1680 ; he persuaded the Assembly 
to raise his salary from 1,000/. to 2,000/. It had been a 
custom for the captains of ships to make certain presents 
to the Governor : Culpepper changed these into fixed dues. 
In 1683 he left the colony. His successor, Lord Effingham, 
created new and unnecessary offices, and devised pretexts 
for exacting additional fees. Both of these Governors 
claimed and exercised the right of repealing laws passed in 
the Assembly, by their own proclamation. The English 
Revolution of 1688, though it introduced no change into 
the constitution of Virginia, seems to have stopped, or at 
least greatly lessened, these evils. One new abuse however 
came in. Hitherto, the Governor had always lived in Vir- 
ginia ; now it became the custom for him to be represented 
by a deputy in the colony. From 1704 to 1740 the Earl of 
Orkney was nominally Governor, but during that long time 
he was represented by a deputy, who received 800/. a year 
out of the Governor's salary. Thus the colony was taxed 
1,200/. a year for the maintenance of the Governor, whom 
they never saw. The English Government excused this on 
the ground that it would be of great service to the colony 
to have some man of high position in England to look after 
their interest : but as Lord Orkney was nearly the whole of 
the time away on foreign service, it can hardly be thought 
that he was of much use to the colony. The most important 



Co PLYMOUTH. [cMAr. 

change introduced by the Revolution was the establishment 
of a college, called the College of William and Mary. Large 
subscriptions for this purpose were given by the colonists, as 
well as by Virginian merchants and other persons in England. 
Professorships were established, and a handsome building 
erected, after plans by Sir Christopher Wren, 



CHAPTER IV. 

PLYMOUTH. 

The first Pimtan settlers (l) — constitution (2) — early history (3) — 
colony independent (4) — tozonships (5) — system of government (6). 

I. The first Puritan Settlers. — The Virginia Company 
originally consisted, as we have seen, of two branches, 
one the South Virginia Company at London, the other 
the North Virginia Company at Plymouth. In 1607 the 
latter sent out forty-five settlers, who established them- 
selves at the mouth of the river Kennebec. This attempt 
came to nothing. The winter was unusually cold ; Popham, 
their leader, died, and the colony broke up. This failure kept 
Englishmen from making any attempt at settlement in that 
quarter for some years. Fishing voyages were made ; and 
Smith, after his return from Virginia, explored the coast, 
gave it the name of New England, and did his best to 
persuade rich men in England to plant a colony there. 
Besides, Sir Ferdinando Gorges, who had taken a leading part 
in fitting out the expedition of 1606, had several times sent 
out ships to explore the coast. But for fourteen years after 



IV.] THE FIRST PURITAN SETTLERS. 6i 

Popham's failure no settlement was made. One reason 
possibly was, that the Virginia Company took off all who 
had money and energy to spend on such enterprises. The 
colonization of Virginia was, as we have already seen, 
brought about by the pressure of poverty and the lack of 
food and employment in England, The colonization of New 
England was due to a totally different cause, namely, the ill- 
treatment which a particular sect received from the English 
Government. During the reign of Elizabeth the English 
Protestants were divided into two parties. There were 
those who thought that the Reformation had gone far enough, 
or even too far, and who wished to keep as much as possible, 
and in some cases even to restore, something of the ritual 
and teaching of the Romish Church. There were others 
who wanted to go much further than the English Church 
had yet gone, and to abolish many things which reminded 
them of the old connexion with Rome. This party was 
itself again divided into various bodies. There were those 
who wished to maintain the system of Church-government 
by bishops, and only to change some of the forms of 
worship. Others wanted to introduce the Presbyterian 
system, that of government by elders, as established in 
Switzerland and France by Calvin and his followers, and in 
Scotland by John Knox. A third party, small and insigni- 
ficant during the reign of Elizabeth, wished to introduce 
the Independent system which existed in some parts of 
Ger^iany. Under this system each congregation was a 
separate body, having full control over its own religious 
affairs. Neither of these last named parties, the Presby- 
terian or the Independent, obtained much importance under 
Elizabeth. But as James I. and Charles I., and the leading 
men among the bishops in their reigns, showed no readiness 
to yield anything to the reforming party in the Church, many of 
those who had hitherto been in favour of keeping the existing 



PLYMOUTH. [chap. 



Church-government, gradually went over to the Presbyterians 
or Independents. During the reigti of Elizabeth several 
severe measures were passed against the Independents, pro- 
hibiting them from holding religious meetings. Under James, 
yet harsher measures were enacted. The result was to drive 
many of them to Holland, where full toleration was granted 
to all sects. Among these refugees was an Independent 
congregation from Scrooby, a village in Nottinghamshire. 
They fled in a body in 1608, under the guidance of their 
minister, Robinson, one of the best and wisest of the 
English Independents, and established themselves at 
Leyden. There they sojourned for more than ten years, and 
were joined by many of their friends from England, so 
that they grew to be a great congregation. But though they 
prospered, they were not altogether satisfied with their abode 
in Holland. Their children were exposed to the temptations 
of a great city, and doubtless many longed for the quiet 
country life in which they had been bred. At length they 
bethought them of forming a settlement in America, to be 
a refuge from the temptations of the world, and perhaps the 
means of conveying Christianity to the heathen. They 
decided to settle, if they were allowed, as a separate com- 
munity, on the lands of the Virginia Company. With this view 
they sent over to England two deputies to get a grant of 
land from the company and a charter from the King. The 
land was granted, but the charter was refused. The King 
however gave a general promise that, if they behaved peace- 
ably, they should not be molested. At first they had some 
doubt about settling without a charter, but one of their 
leaders remarked, that " if there should be a purpose or 
desire to wrong them, though they had a seal as broad as 
the house floor, it would not serve the turn, for there would 
be means enough found to recall it or reverse it." On 
the 5th of August, 1620, a hundred and twenty of them, 



IV.] THE FIRST PURITAN SETTLERS. 63 

having crossed over from Leyden, set sail from South- 
ampton in two vessels, the Speedwell and the Mayflower. 
At first everything seemed against them ; before they had 
gone far, the Speedwell sprang a leak, and was obliged 
to return for repairs. On the next attempt, when they 
were three hundred miles from land, the Speedivell was 
found to be overmasted, and unfit for the voyage. They 
decided to divide into two companies, one of which should 
return, and the other proceed in the Mayflower. On the 
9th of November they sighted land. This proved to be 
Cape Cod, a promontory some 130 miles north of the 
spot where they wished to settle ; they then directed the 
Master of the ship to sail south. This however he pro- 
fessed himself unable to do, and landed them inside 
the bay formed by Cape Cod and the mainland. They 
believed that he had been bribed by the Dutch, who traded 
with the Indians about the mouth of the river Hudson, and 
who did not wish to have any rivals there. As it turned 
out, the coast within the bay was a fitter spot for a weak 
colony. The Indians had a few years before captured 
the crew of a French vessel, and cruelly put them to death. 
One of the French had warned them that their crime would 
not go unpunished. Shortly after, a great plague fell upon 
them and swept off whole villages. This had a twofold 
effect : it weakened the Indians, and left much of their country 
desolate and empty for the new comers, and it made the 
savages believe that the God of the white men would punish 
any wrong done to them. But for this protection, a weak ' 
colony could hardly have escaped destruction by the Indians, 
In other respects too the spot was well suited for a settle- 
ment : the soil was tairly fertile, there was good harbourage 
fur ships, and the climate, though severe in winter, was 
healthy. In fact it was, like England, a country less attractive 
and less rich in its resources than southern lands, but more 



64 PLYMOUTH. [chap. 

fitted to call out energy and activity, and so to breed haidy 
and industrious citizens. 

2. Constitution.— The first act of the settlers was to con- 
stitute themselves a body politic, with power to make laws 
and ordinances for the management of their joint affairs. 
They then looked out for a suitable spot for a permanent 
settlement. They decided on. a place with a harbour, 
cornfields, and running water, on the west side of the 
bay. On the nth (old style) of December, they landed, 
calling the place " Plymouth," after the last English town 
they had left. As they had settled beyond the limits of 
the Virginia Company, their patent was useless ; the land 
which they occupied was however in the possession of 
another company. Gorges and other leading men had, 
in 1620, obtained a charter from the King for the land 
which was to have been occupied by the North Virginia 
Company. This was, in fact, a revival of that company, 
and as the new company, like the old one, numbered 
among its members many west-countrymen, it was called 
the Plymouth Company. But it must be remembered that 
this Plymouth Company and Plymouth the Puritan Colony 
were two distinct bodies, and that neither in any way 
took its name from the other. In 162 1 the colony ob- 
tained a patent from the company. This was not granted 
directly to the settlers themselves, but to a body of London 
merchants. These men formed a sort of smaller corpora- 
tion under the Plymouth Company. They fitted out the 
colonists, and took the expense of sending them out. The 
shares were allotted to the colonists themselves, and to those 
who contributed money — one share to each emigrant, and 
one for every 10/. invested. The colonists were to be pro- 
vided with food and all other necessaries from the common 
stock. The profits were to accumulate, and, at the end of 
seven years, to be divided among all the shareholders. These 



IV.] EARLY HISTORY. 65 

merchants seem to have gone into the matter merely as a 
question of profit, and to have had no special sympathy with 
the Puritans, and accordingly they dealt somewhat harshly 
with the colonists. 

3. Early History. — For the first few years the climate 
bore hardly on the settlers, and the history of the colony is 
little more than one long story of suffering and endurance. 
The first winter tlTe cold was so severe that out of a 
hundred settlers about half died, and of the rest all but 
six or seven were at one time ill. Slighter hardships had 
broken up the Virgnia settlements under Lane and Somers. 
But the men of Plymouth were more enduring, and held 
on ; the friendship of the Indians was of great service to 
them. The first meeting, a few days after the settlers 
landed, was hostile, and the English had to use their guns 
in self-defence. But soon after they met with a savage 
who could speak English, and they soon made friends 
with Massasoit, the chief sachem in those parts. With him 
they made a firm league ; two years later his life was saved 
by the medical skill of the English, and he was ever 
after their fast friend. The only show of enmity on the part 
of the Indians was made by a chief named Canonicus. He 
sent the English the skin of a snake full of arrows, as a sort 
of challenge. Bradford, the governor of Plymouth, stuffed 
the skin with powder and ball, and sent it back. The Indians 
seem to have taken the warning, and made no attack. After 
this, the settlers of Plymouth lived for many years at peace 
with their savage neighbours. One exception there was indeed, 
but that was due entirely to the misconduct of other English 
settlers. In 1622 one Weston obtained a patent from the 
Plymouth Company, and settled sixty men in Massachusetts 
some thirty or forty miles north of Plymouth. They proved 
idle and disorderly, and instead of working, plundered the 
Indians, and so endangered the peace between them and the 

y 



66 PLYMOUTH. [chap. 

Plymouth settlers. Some trifling hostilities broke out and a 
few Indians were killed, but peace was soon restored. 
Weston's colony, in less than two years from its foundation, 
broke up, greatly oppressed by famine, but partly from 
dread of the Indians. Somewhat later, one Captain Wol- 
laston set up a plantation near the site of Weston's. This 
too failed, and Wollaston, with most of his men, departed 
to Virginia. The rest stayed under th'e leadership of one 
Morton, a dissolute and riotous man. He sold arms and 
ammunition to the Indians, and by this and other misdeeds 
became so dangerous to the men of Plymouth that they 
at length arrested him and sent him home. At a later 
day, as we shall see, he returned to America, repeated his 
offences, and was again banished. 

4. Colony independent of the Company. — Partly, perhaps, 
through these hindrances, the colony for a while did not 
prosper. For the first five y.ears the settlers had no cattle, 
and when their corn was spent, they had often to live wholly 
on shell-fish. At the end of four years the settlement num- 
bered only a hundred and eighty persons, dweUing in thirty- 
two houses, and the shareholders at home grumbled at the 
small profits. In 1627 a change was made, greatly for the 
good of the colony ; the settlers themselves bought up the 
whole stock of the company, paying for it by instalments ; 
they had to raise the money at high interest. Nevertheless, 
the knowledge that they were working for their own profit so 
quickened their industry, that in six years from that time they 
had paid off all their debts and had become the independent 
owners of their own land, houses, and live stock. One im- 
portant result of this was the rapid increase of numbers. 
Hitherto the new comers were only such men as the share- 
holders thought hkely to make good colonists and were 
willing to send out. Now it was free to the settlers to choose 
their own associates, and accordingly many of the English 



IV.] TOWNSHIPS. 67 

Puritans joined them. By 1643 the colony numbered three 
thousand inhabitants, divided among eight towns. More- 
over, the members of the Plymouth Company sent out fishing 
and exploring expeditions, and formed trading stations along 
the coast, and these opened fresh markets for the produce 
of Plymouth. 

5. Townships.^-The process by which Plymouth grew was 
quite different from that which we have seen in Virginia. 
The settlers did not spread over a wide surface of country, 
living in sohtary plantations, but formed townships. As 
their numbers increased and outgrew the original settle- 
ments, they moved off in bodies, each occupying an allotted 
portion of ground, of which a part was held in common. 
Thus there were no great estates, as in Virginia, and all the 
towns, or as we should rather call them, villages, were within 
easy reach of one another. For some while they did not 
e;«end inland, but only along the coast, so that of the eight 
townships first formed seven were by the sea. There were 
various causes for this difference between Virginia and Ply- 
mouth. One was that the Puritans made it a great point to 
worship frequently together, and so could not bear to be 
widely scattered. Another was that the Plymouth settlers were 
not, like many of the Virginians, taken from the landed gentry, 
and so they had no special taste for large landed estates, even 
if they could have got them. Moreover, at that time, among 
the English yeomen and cottagers much of the land was still 
held and farmed in common by villages, so that the system 
of townships fell in with the home usages of the colonists. 
Moreover, there was no such means of passing from one 
part of the country to another and of carrying goods as was 
alTorded by the rivers in Virginia, and the fear of the 
Indians served to keep the settlers together. It is very 
important to bear all this in mind, since it was the leading 
point of difference, not only between Virginia and Plymouth, 

F 2 



68 PLYMOUTH. [chap. 

but between the southern and northern colonies. The for- 
mer for the most part consisted of scattered plantations, the 
latter of closely connected townships. 

6. System of Government.— The government of Plymouth 
consisted of a Governor, a body of Assistants, and an 
Assembly. The Governor and Assistants were elected 
by the whole body of freemen. The Assembly was at first 
what is called primary, that is to say, it consisted of the 
whole body of freemen meeting themselves, not sending 
their representatives. The first freemen were the original 
settlers, afterwards those who in each town were admitted 
by the body of freemen already existing. As may be easily 
supposed, when the number of townships increased, it was 
found inconvenient for the whole body of freemen to meet 
together for public business. Accordingly in 1639 the 
system of representation, the same by which the English 
House of Commons is formed, was introduced. Every 
township sent two representatives, and the body so returned 
was, with the Governor and Assistants, the General 
Court. The primary Assembly of all the freemen still kept 
its power of enacting laws, but this gradually fell into 
disuse, and the whole government passed over to the General 
Court. Thus we see that in the two earliest American 
colonies, the government was modelled on that of England. 
But there was this important difference between the two ; 
in Virginia the system of government was originally copied 
from the English constitution ; while in Plymouth it was at 
first quite different, and became like it only by gradually 
fittmg itself to the wants of the people. This change is of 
special importance, since it shows the way in which, in 
many free communities in different parts of the world, a 
representative assembly has taken the place of a primary 
one. But in most cases this change has taken place in such 
early times, that our knowledge of it is vague and impertect. 



V. ] FIRST SE TTL EMENT OF MA SSA CH USE TTS. 69 

The American colonies furnish almost the only instance in 
which we can trace the whole process. After this change 
the Governor and Assistants were still elected by the whole 
body of freemen. The Assistants sat as judges in criminal 
and civil cases, with a jury of freemen, and generally 
managed public business. So little ambition was there 
in the state, and so small was the profit and honour 
attached to the public offices, that a law was passed im- 
posing a fine on anyone who refused the place of Governor 
or Assistant when elected. For the first sixteen years the 
colony lived under the laws of England. In 1636 a special 
committee was appointed to help the Governor and Assistants 
in drawing up a code of laws. These laws were simple in 
their character, not copied from the laws of England, but 
suited to the wants of a small community living in a plain 
manner. Cases too trifling to come before the Assistants 
were tried by magistrates in the different townships. 



CHAPTER V. 

MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT. 

Settlement in Massachusetts Bay {i)—c/ianges in constitution (2) — 
laws and manners (3) — religious troubles (4) — danger from the 
English government (5) — the charter threatened (6) — settlement 
of Conttecticut {-j)— constitution (8) — other settlers in Connecti- 
cut (9) — the Pequod war (10). 

I. The Settlement in Massachusetts Bay. — When the 
North Virginia Company was renewed under the name of 
the Plymouth Company, many important men belonged to it, 



70 MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT. [chap. 

and some of the members, such as Sir Ferdinando 
Gorges and Captain John Mason, took a great interest 
in its prosperity. Yet it was far inferior in its results 
to the Virginia Company. No successful settlements were 
made at the expense of the company, nor does it seem 
to have done much in the way of trade. The chief thing 
done was to sell or let large tracts of land to private per- 
sons, many of them members of the company, which they 
might occupy if they chose. This hindered rather than 
furthered colonization. For the leading men of the com- 
pany knew so little of the country that they often care- 
lessly disposed of the same tract of land twice over, and this 
gave rise to much confusion in later times. Thus for some 
years after the settlement of Plymouth very little else was 
done in that quarter. We have already seen what became 
of two settlements, those under Weston and Wollaston. 
Another attempt was made in 1623. In that year, Robert 
Gorges, a son of Sir Ferdinando, was sent out to plant a 
colpny at Wessagusset, where Weston had already failed. 
But though he went out with a commission from the com- 
pany as Governor-General of New England, he did nothing 
worth speaking of, and only left a few scattered settlers. 
Some of the members of the company too had regular es- 
tablishments for fishing and trading in furs, managed by 
hired servants, and a good many vessels fished along the 
Massachusetts bay. Besides this, a few stray emigrants 
seem to have settled themselves alone, but not to have 
formed any villages. Some of these traders and fisher- 
men did much harm by selling guns to the natives, and 
this, together with the Virginia massacre, led the King 
to publish a proclamation forbidding anyone to sell arms 
or ammunition to the savages in America. Before long the 
success of the Plymouth colonists led others to follow in 
their footsteps. About 1627 some of the leaders among the 



v.] FIRST SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS. 71 

Puritan party, men of much greater wealth and education 
Than the founders of Plymouth, bethought them of form- 
ing a second Puritan colony in America. Already some of 
these men had a fishing station on the coast about sixty 
miles from Plymouth, which was to serve as a sort of foun- 
dation for their colony. In 1628 they got a- tract of land, 
about sixty miles along the coast, granted them by the Ply- 
mouth Company, and sent out a party of sixty men to 
occupy it. So far the founder^ of the settlement were only 
a private trading company; but in the spring of 1629 they 
took an important step, — they increased their number, and 
obtained a charter from the King making them into a cor- 
poration, called the Company of the Massachusetts Bay in 
New England. This company had nothing to do with the 
Plymouth Company, beyond having bought a tract of land 
from it. In its character and objects it was not unlike the 
Virginia Company. Its affairs were managed by a Governor, 
a Deputy-Governor, and eighteen Assistants. All these 
officers were elected by the whole company once a year. 
The whole body of members had the power of making laws 
for the settlers in their territory so long as these did not in- 
terfere with the laws of England. The company immediately- 
appointed a Council of thirteen to manage their affairs in 
the colony, and sent out six ships with three hundred men 
and eighty women. Next year a very important change was 
made. The charter said nothing as to the place at which 
the meetings of the company were to be held. Accordingly 
the members resolved to carry the charter over to America, 
and to hold their meetings there. In this way they would 
be less under the eye of the English Government, and 
better able to make such religious and political changes 
as might please them. If the company had been really 
like the Virginia Company, a trading corporation, this change 
would have been inconvenient. But from the outset the 



72 MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT. [chap. 

formation of a Puritan colony was looked on as their chief 
object. Rules were made about the joint trade of the 
company, but these soon passed out of sight. The com- 
pany seems never to have divided any profits in money, 
and the only return which the subscribers received for the 
money they had put in was the land allotted to them in 
America. The real object of the company was something 
very different from trade. It was to found a separate State, 
independent of England, and differing from it in many 
leading points. This attempt was even more remarkable 
than the undertakings of the Virginia and Plymouth colonists. 
The Virginia Company made their settlement with the in- 
tention that it should be closely connected with England, 
and though it became in many ways independent, yet it 
did so gradually, and rather by chance than of set pur- 
pose. Plymouth was indeed quite as independent as 
Massachusetts. But then, Plymouth was in every way a 
much less important place. The men who founded it were 
poor and unlearned, and could be hardly said to have taken 
up the enterprise of their own free will, but were rather forced 
into it by the ill-treatment they met with in England. The 
founders of Massachusetts were in a very different position. 
We have seen that among those who wished to carry the 
Protestant Reformation further than it had yet gone there 
were different parties. There were those who condemned 
the Church of England altogether, and wished instead to 
have Independent, or, as they may be called. Congregational 
churches. The founders of Plymouth belonged to this 
party. The party to which the founders of Massachusetts 
belonged also wished to remove many usages which seemed 
to them too much like those of the Romish Church. But 
they sought to do so, not by leaving the English Church 
and setting up a new system, but by altering the prac- 
tices of the Church itself. Most of those Puritans who 



v.] FIRST SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS. 73 

were in Parliament and took an active part in public 
affairs were of this latter party. At this particular time 
those men were just as much opposed to the system of 
political government in England as to the practices of the 
Church ; for the King was beginning to set Parliament at 
naught, and to govern by his own will. Pie levied taxes 
without the consent of the House of Commons, and im- 
prisoned those who would not pay : in short, he was entering 
upon that system of government which led to the Great 
Rebellion. In founding the colony of Massachusetts, the 
Puritans were securing a refuge where they might be safe 
from this arbitrary government, and might manage things ac- 
cording to their own political principles. This, coupled with 
the greater wealth and higher birth of the first colonists, made 
the settlement of Massachusetts a much more important event 
than that of Plymouth ; for the founders of Massachusetts 
were for the most part rich men, some country squires 
and some merchants, and several were kinsfolk to the 
greatest men of the day. Many of those who furthered 
it, though not of those who actually went out, were mem- 
bers of parliament, who afterwards tcok a leading part in 
English affairs ; and some of the actual settlers seem to 
have been in nowise inferior to them in wisdom and energy, 
and doubtless would have made great names for them- 
selves if they had stayed in Englan 1. .So that, by looking 
at the colony of Massachusetts, we can see what sort of a 
commonwealth was constructed by the best men of the 
Puritan party, and, to some extent, what they would have 
made the government of England if they could have had 
their way unchecked. The first Governor, John Winthrop, 
was a country gentleman of a good estate in Suffolk, forty- 
two years of age. Eaton, one of the Assistants, had been 
the Enghsh minister at the court of Denmark. To such 
men as these it must have been no small sacrifice to leave 



74 MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT. [chap. 

England and their houses and estates, and to settle in a 
wilderness. In this Massachusetts diftered from Virginia : 
for though Lord Delaware and Gates and Dale had gone 
out to the colony, yet they only went for a while to set things 
in order, with no intention of staying ; but in Massachusetts 
men of great ability and distinction went out at the very 
first as regular settlers. This we may be sure they would 
never have done without the hope of enjoying such political 
and religious freedom as was not to be had in England. 

In the summer of 1630 Winthrop went out with a thou- 
sand emigrants. Like the early settlers in Virginia and Ply- 
mouth, they suffered grievous hardships. In the winter before 
nearly eighty of the colonists had died, and of course, as 
their numbers increased, food was scarcer and their plight 
became worse. Moreover, the cold weather came on before 
they had time to settle and build houses, and many died. 
By ill luck it was a time of dearth in England, and very little 
corn was sent over, and that at great prices. One result of 
this was that the settlers, in their attempts to find food, 
spread abroad, and instead of all forming one town, as was 
originally intended, they formed eight small settlements. 

2. Changes in Constitution. — One of the most interesting 
and remarkable things in the early history of Massachusetts 
is the series of changes in its system of government. 
After a few years it had, like Virginia and Plymouth, 
a government which was a sort of miniature of the Eng- 
lish system, and consisted of a Governor, a Council of 
Assistants, and a body of Representatives, two from each 
settlement. In the process by which this came about Massa- 
chusetts resembled, not Virginia, but Plymouth. The 
arrangement was not made once for all, but grew gradually 
by various changes which were made as they became 
necessary. Originally all important matters were managed 
by the whole body of the freemen at their meetings four 



v.] CHANGES IN CONSTITUTION. 75 

times in the year. The number of freemen however 
increased so fast that the system became inconvenient, 
and in October, 1630, the right of making laws and of 
electing the Governor and Deputy-Governor was given over 
to the Assistants. Very soon it was found difficult to get 
together seven Assistants, which was the number required 
to form a meeting. Accordingly the Assistants enacted 
that, if less than nine of them should be in the colony, 
the majority should be enough to form a- meeting. This 
change placed the authority in the hands of a very small 
body. In May, 1 631, the manner of electing Assistants was 
altered ; the Assistants, instead of being elected afresh every 
year, remained in office until they were specially removed by 
a vote of the freemen. After these two measures, the man- 
agement of affairs was likely to fall into the hands of a very 
small body of men, who could not easily be deprived of their 
office. In the spring of 1631 the inhabitants of Watertown, 
one of the eight settlements, refused to pay a tax levied by 
the Assistants. When the General Court of all the freemen 
met in May, it was decided that two men should be sent from 
each settlement to decide the question of taxation. Two 
points should be noticed : i. The principle for which the 
men of Watertown had contended, that they should not be 
taxed without their own consent, was admitted ; 2, The 
freemen, instead of acting directly in the matter, found it 
more convenient to send deputies to speak for them. For the 
present these deputies had no power of lawmaking, but only 
advised the Assistants about taxation. At the same time 
the freemen claimed and were allowed the right of electing 
the Governor and Assistants each year. Two years later a 
very important change was made. The freemen, finding that 
to attend the meetings was too great an interruption to their 
business, reserved to themselves only the power of electing 
the Governor and Deputy-Governor, and made over all their 



76 MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT, [chap. 

other powers to their deputies. These Deputies, together 
with the Governor and Assistants, formed the General 
Court. In the year 1634 the ballot-box was introduced 
at the election, and, for the first time, Winthrop was not 
elected. Soon after, when seven men were appointed to 
settle the division of the town lands of Boston, several of 
the chief men were left out, and poorer men chosen, from 
an idea that otherwise the lower class of settlers would not 
get their fair share. In this same year a proposal was made 
which, if carried, would have completely changed the 
character of the colony. Certain Puritans of the upper 
classes, including Lord Brook and Lord Say and Sele, who 
were both members of the Plymouth Company and took a 
great interest in colonization, proposed to come over. They 
required however that two orders should be established in 
the colony, gentlemen and freeholders. The rank of the 
first was to be hereditary, and the Governor was always to be 
chosen from it. The second order, the freeholders, was to 
consist of those who had a certain amount of property, 
while all below that were to be shut out from all political 
power. Such a system would have robbed many of the 
freemen of the very liberty in hopes of which they came 
over. If the proposal had been made earlier, before the 
freemen had strengthened themselves by naming repre- 
sentatives, it might have been entertained, but as it was it 
met with no favour. Two years later an attempt was made 
to establish a Permanent Council. Its members were to hold 
office for life, and could only be removed for some serious 
cause. Some councillors were elected, but nothing further 
was ever done, and the scheme fell to the ground. 

Up to 1644 the Deputies sat together with the Assistants, 
but in that year they sat apart, like the En ;lish House of 
Commons. The manner in which this came about is a 
good illustration of the simple life of the colony, and 



v.] LA WS AND MANNERS. 77 

sho\v^ how the Government had to manage all matters, great 
and small, and how the two were in a great measure mixed 
up. A lawsuit about a stolen pig came before the General 
Court. The parties to the suit were a poor widow and one 
Captain Keayne, a rich man, who was thought hard to the 
poor, and so was unpopular. Seven Assistants and eight 
Deputies were on Keayne's side ; two Assistants and^fteen 
Deputies were against him. The Assistants were looked on 
as the champions of the rich; the Deputies, of the poor : and 
thus a bitter feeling sprang up. A long dispute followed, 
and in the end the power of the Deputies was increased by 
their being allowed to sit as a separate body. After that 
the constitution of Massachusetts underwent no important 
change for forty years. 

3. Laws and Manners. — All this while, though Massa- 
chusetts was in so many ways independent, and had so 
little connexion with the home Government, yet it preferred 
to be governed by the laws of England ; that is to say, 
the law of England was the only law which held good in 
Massachusetts, except when anything different was specially 
enacted by the Court. But, in 1636, the people who, as 
we have seen, were somewhat jealous of the leading men, 
demanded a code of laws, feeling that they would be more 
secure if they were governed by fixed statutes than by 
enactments made from time to time by the Court. On the 
other hand, Winthrop and some of the principal men 
felt that the Government in England might resent the 
enactment of a regular code of laws, as if the settlers 
thereby claimed to be independent of the mother country. 
The people however were determined to have a code, 
and at length got their way. A committee was appointed 
to draw one up, and, though there was much delay, 
in 1641 a complete set of laws was enacted under the 
name of the Body ot Liberties. This code was modelled 



78 MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT, [chap. 

in many respects, not on the English law, but on that of 
Moses. In one respect it followed the principles of the 
English law in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. All 
men who appeared to be living in a state of idleness were 
compelled to give an account of themselves to the Govern- 
ment, and all heads of families were bound to see that their 
children were properly employed. 

4. Religious Troubles. — ■ Originally the Massachusetts 
settlers differed from those of Plymouth in their position 
towards the Church. They were only reformers, not dis- 
senters ; but though they accepted the government of the 
Church while they were in England, they had no such liking 
for it that they cared to continue their connexion with it when 
it was even easier and simpler to establish a new system. Im- 
mediately upon their first landing in 1628 they adopted a 
system of Independent churches, like that of Plymouth. In 
1 63 1 a law was passed that no man should be a freeman of the 
colony, that is to say, should have any share in the govern- 
ment or in the election of officers, unless he belonged to a 
church. The effect of this was to establish a connexion 
between the churches and the civil government. Each 
church had the power of admitting fresh members to itself ; 
that is to say, of making fresh citizens. Such a power was 
too important to be exercised without any control on the 
part of the state; moreover, . the New England Puritans 
believed, like most men in that age, that it was their duty to 
root out every form of belief which they thought false, and that, 
if needs were, by force. The result of this was, that those 
who held unpopular opinions in Massachusetts were treated 
in much the same way as the Puritans themselves were in 
England. Endicott, a harsh and austere man, who was 
sent out in charge of the first party in 1628, was empowered 
to expel anyone from the colony whom he thought an 
unsuitable inhabitant. He accordingly drove out two 



V.J RELIGIOUS TROUBLES. 79 

brothers, John and Samuel Brown, a lawyer and a merchant, 
who wished to celebrate worship according to the forms 
of the 4^hurch of England. Three years later, one Lynn 
was whipped and banished for writing home letters attack- 
ing the system of church-government. In 1634 a more 
serious contest arose. In that yeai", Roger Williams, an 
able young Welshman, trained at Oxford, and of great 
integrity and gentleness, was minister at Salem, a town in 
Massachusetts. There he taught certain doctrines, both in 
religion and politics, which were thought dangerous to the 
state. He was brought before the Court, and after much 
discussion they decided to send him back to England. 
Before this sentence could be carried out, he escaped. Soon 
afterwards he established a small settlement to the south of 
Massachusetts. In justice, it must be said that the chief 
men in Massachusetts do not seem to have borne any ill- 
will against Williams afterwards. Indeed, while he was still 
on his trial, Winthrop, hearing that he was in need, sent 
him money. Two years later worse troubles arose. A cer- 
tain Mrs. Hutchinson, an active and clever woman, took to 
giving religious lectures at Boston. She soon became the 
leader of a sect in many points opposed to the teaching of 
the regular ministers. In this she was supported by Wheel- 
wright, the minister of Boston, and by nearly the whole of his 
church. The matter was brought before the General Court, 
and Greensmith, one of Mrs. Hutchinson's chief supporters, 
was fined 40/. The church of Boston took up his cause, 
and sent a petition to the Court on his behalf. For this they 
were punished in a curious way. Hitherto Boston had been 
considered the chief town in the colony. Winthrop's house 
was there, and the General Court held its meetings there. It 
was now resolved that the Court should meet at Newtown, 
the place next in importance. Soon after this the yearly 
election of Governor and Assistants came on, and it almost 



So MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT. [chap. 

seemed as if a civil war was at hand. Henry Vane, who had 
been Governor for the past year, was a young man of good 
family and education, and afterwards took a leading part 
among the statesmen of the English Commonwealth. He was 
however but a new comer in Massachusetts, and most likely 
the old settlers, Winthrop and his friends, looked on his 
youth and inexperience with some suspicion. Though Vane 
was not exactly one of Mrs. Hutchinson's party, he regarded 
her with more favour than most of the chief men did, and 
seems to have been opposed to the proceedings against her. 
In such a state of things the election was sure to be the signal 
for a great outbreak of angry feeling. Winthrop was elected 
Governor, and Vane and his chief supporters were not even 
chosen to be Assistants. After this a tumult arose and 
fierce speeches were made, and some even came to blows. 
The men of Boston, who had been wont to send an escort 
with the Governor on pubhc occasions, now refused it. 
Before the end of the year a conference of all the churches was 
held to settle some way of dealing with these troubles. Vane, 
whose influence might have been a help to those accused, 
had gone back to England. At the conference. Wheelwright 
was put on his trial for a sermon which he had preached, and 
for his opin ons and practice generally. Mrs. Hutchinson v/as 
charged with imputing false teaching to all the ministers in 
the country except those of Boston. Several others of her 
chief supporters were accused of having made a heretical 
and scandalous statement in their petition on behalf of 
Greensmith. For this offence Mrs. Hutchinson and Wheel- 
wright were banished ; the rest had to acknowledge their 
guilt and to yield up their arms, and were deprived of any 
office that they held. With this the troubles ended, and the 
churches of Massachusetts for a while enjoyed peace. All 
traces of the storm soon passed away. Wheelwright alter 
a time contessed himself in error, and was allowed to return. 



v.] DANGER FROM THE ENGLISH GOVERNMENT. 8i 

Many of the others who had been punished, aftemvards held 
offices, and served as loyal citizens in the wars against the 
Indians. It gives one a good idea of the small size of 
Massachusetts, and from what a little seed a great nation has 
grown, when one sees the whole state thrown into agitation, 
and almost civil war, by an affair which in England would 
not have occupied the attention of a single county, or even 
a large town, and of which ninety-nine persons out of a 
hundred might never have heard. It shows one too how 
popular the government was in spite of all its severity, and 
how loyal the citizens were, when such an affair could pass 
over and leave no ill effects behind, especially as only the 
leaders were banished, and many remained who might have 
served as the seed for a new faction. 

5. Danger from the English Government. — Meanwhile, 
the colony was exposed to dangers from without as well 
as Irom within. Certain persons, Gardiner, Morton, and 
Ratchffe, had been expelled from Massachusetts, the first 
XS'io for disorderly conduct, the last for speaking ill of 
the government. They had complained to the English 
Government of their ill-treatment. Such complaints wei-e 
readily received. Archbishop Laud and his party must 
from the first have looked on the colony v^ith dislike and 
distrust. The harshness with which the Browns had been 
treated would increase this feeling. Ratcliffe too seems to 
have been dealt with severely ; and though Gardiner and 
Morton were probably disorderly and vicious men, they 
could easily make up a fair-sounding story against the 
colonists. It is scarcely likely that the King, when he granted 
the charter, ever imagined what sort oi fruit it would bear. 
The Privy Council at once took measures to control the in- 
dependent spirit of Massachusetts. In February, 1634, they 
issued an order setting forth that many disaffected persons 
were crossing over to New England, and that, as evil conse- 

G 



83 niA5SAC//USETTS AMD CONXECTJCUT. [chap. 

quences would result from this, all ships should for a 
while be stopped from sailing thither. At the same time 
they demanded that the Massachusetts charter should be 
laid before them. Two months later the King issued a com- 
mission to Laud and ten others, empowering them to punish 
ecclesiastical offences in the colonies, to remove governors, 
to appoint judges and magistrates, to establish courts, and to 
revoke all charters and patents that might have been un- 
fairly obtained. A little later, Sir Ferdinando Gorges laid 
before the Privy Council a scheme for dividing New Eng- 
land into a number of provinces, each under a Lieutenant- 
Governor, with one Governor over the whole, all to be 
appointed by the Crown. Such proceedings naturally alarmed 
the colonists. Even at this early time they showed that, if 
needful, they were prepared to resist any attack on their 
liberties. They fortified three of their chief towns, Boston, 
Charlestown, and Dorchester, and made arrangements for 
the collection and safe keeping of arms. A commission was 
appointed to manage all military affairs, with power, if war 
broke out, to imprison, or even put to death, any persons 
that refused to obey them. At the same time it was enacted 
that the freemen should no longer take the oath of 
allegiance to the King, but instead, should swear to be faith- 
ful and true to the commonwealth of Massachusetts. 

6. The Charter Threatened. — In 1635 the Plymouth Com- 
pany came to an end. Its existence had done no good, 
either to members of the company or to others, and ac- 
cordingly they resolved to surrender their patent to the 
King. The only lasting effect of the company was to create 
confusion by the reckless way in which it had granted 
the same lands over and over again to different occu- 
pants. In the autumn of 1635 vigorous measures were taken 
by the English Government against Massachusetts. A writ 
of Quo WarmniOy like that which had overthrown the 



V.J SETTLl^MENT OF COXNECTICUT. 83 

Virginia Company, was issued, and the Massachusetts charter 
V/as declared null and void. Two events which could have 
been in no way reckoned on made the attack vain. The 
ship in which Gorges was coming out to support the 
interests of the English Government fell to pieces almost as 
soon as launched. About the same time Mason, a leading 
member of the Plymouth Company, a friend of Gorges, and 
a most energetic opponent of Massachusetts, died. For 
three years no farther attempt was made to put the judg- 
ment against the charter in force. Eut in 163S some more 
disaffected people who had been punished by the Massa- 
chusetts government for disorderly and seditious conduct, 
can^.e to England with complaints, and stirred up the home 
Government against the colony. A strict order was sent out 
demanding the charter. The colony sent back, not the 
charter, but a protest against the injustice of taking it from 
them. It seemed as if they would have either to keep it by 
force or to yield. But the English Government soon had 
more serious matters to attend to at home. By 1639 the 
Scotch were in arms against Charles I. The civil war took 
off all attention from the colonies, and when peace was 
restored, the Puritans had the ujDpcr hand, and the charter 
of Massachusetts was safe. 

7. Settlement of Connecticut. — Of all the American colo- 
nies, Massachusetts was the first, and for a long while the 
only one, which became itself the parent of other indepen- 
dent states. About 1634 the people in three of the town- 
ships of Massachusetts — Newtown, Watertown, and Dor- 
chester — being pres-sed by lack of pasture for their catde, 
formed a scheme for settling the lands whicii lay to the 
west beyond the boundary of Plymouth. This was a fertile 
land, watered by a broad river, the Connecticut. One 
reason for the movement was the fear that the Dutch, who 
were already settled on the river Hudson^ might step in 

G 2 



84 MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT, [chap. 

and occupy this land. It was thought too that some of 
the leading men at Newtown wished for more influence 
and independence than they enjoyed there. The measure 
was at first much opposed in the General Court. It was 
thought that it would weaken the settlement, and take 
off some of their most valued ministers. Moreover, the 
Dutch had already set up a fort on the river, and might 
resent any trespass there. The Indians also in that 
quarter were many and fierce. The home Government too 
might disapprove of the settlers moving into lands to which 
they had no legal claim. Among those who were most 
anxious for the change were the people of Watertown. 
They, as we have seen, had been the first to resist the claim 
of the Governors and Assistants to impose taxes, and it is 
possible that both sides were influenced by the memory of 
that quarrel. Certain it is at least that the Assistants were 
opposed to the emigration, and the Deputies in favour of it. 
The latter view prevailed, and in 1635, with the leave of 
the Court, a settlement was formed. The emigrants set out 
too late in the year, and they suffered great hardships. The 
next year about a hundred emigrants with a hundred and 
sixty cattle set forth. By 1637 the new settlement con- 
tained three towns and eight hundred inhabitants. 

8. Constitution. — The new colony was called Connecticut. 
At first the government was unsettled. It was held that the 
inhabitants were still subject to the state of Massachusetts ; 
yet as early as 1636 they had a Court of their own, consisting 
ot two deputies from each town, who managed all the public 
business of the settlement. This system went on for three 
years, but it was clear that they could not continue de- 
pendent on the government of a state separated Irom them 
by more than a hundred and thirty miles of wilderness. 
Accordingly in 1639 the freemen of Cpnnecticut all met 
together and formed a Constitution very like that of Massa- 



v.] THE PEQUOD WAR. 8$ 

chiisetts. The whole body of ft eemen were to elect a Gover- 
nor and six Magistrates, who were to administer justice an^l 
mana;.;e public affairs. Each town was to elect two Deputies, 
and those, together with the Governor and Assistants, were 
to form the supreme Government. The chief points of 
difference between this Constitution and that of Massa- 
chusetts were two : — i. Tiie freemen of each town only 
needed to be ^.dmitted by the other freemen of that town, 
and were not obliged to be church members ; 2, No man 
could be governor for two years together. Massachusetts 
does not seem to have made any attempt to keep its hold 
over Connecticut, but allowed its inhabitants to set up a 
perfectly independent government. For the present Con- 
necticut had no charter or patent from the Crown, and the 
constitution, like that of Plymouth, rested only on the agree- 
ment of the citizens. 

9. Other settlers in Connecticut. — While this state was 
being formed, an attempt was also made by a party in 
England to colonize the same country. In the autumn 
of 1635, just when the first migration was being made from 
Massachusetts, John VVinthrop, the son of the Massachu- 
setts governor, came out with a commission from Lord 
Brook, Lord Say and Sele, and others, to be the governor 
of a tract of land on the river Connecticut. According 
to their orders, he established a fort at the mouth of the 
river, driving out a ship that had been sent by the Dutch to 
lay claim to the place. This settlement, for a while, had no 
connexion with the towns founded from Massachusetts. But 
in 1644, Fenwick, the governor of the fort, made it over to 
the state of Connecticut, in return for certain duties to Le 
levied on ships sailing past. 

10. The Pequod War.— Soon after the settlement of Con- 
necticut, New England was engaged in its first Indian war. 
The country near the river Connecticut was inhabited by the 



86 MASSACHUSETTS AND CONNECTICUT, [chap. 

Peqnods, a fierce and warlike tribe, numbering' nearly a 
thousand warriors. For three or four years there were various 
paltry quarrels between the Pequods and the English, and 
some on each side were killed. The Pequods tried to 
strengthen themselves by an alliance Avith a neighbouring 
tribe, the Narragansctts. Roger Williams, who had been 
banished from Massachusetts, now showed a noble spirit of 
forgiveness. Being able to speak the Indian language, he 
went at the risk of his own life to the Narragansctts chiefs, 
and persuaded them to have no dealings with the Pequods. 
They were the more easily persuaded to this as the Pequods 
had formerly been their enemies. Soon after the Narra- 
gansetts sent an embassy to Boston, and made a firm 
alliance with England. The Mohegans, the only other 
powerful tribe of Indians in that country, were also friendly 
to the English. Thus the Pequods were left to stand alone. 
If it had been otherwise, and if the Indian tribes had united, 
it is possible that the P'nglish settlers might have been 
exterminated. In 1637 the English considered that they 
had good cause for beginning the war, and a force from 
Massachusetts and Connecticut marched against the Indians. 
They attacked the chief fort, where the Pequods haci pl.iced 
their women and children. The Indians for a while resisted, 
till the English set the fort on fire. The light wood and 
wicker work was at once in a blaze. All within, men, women, 
and children, to the number of six hundred, perished. Of 
the besiegers only two fell. The English then pushed on 
into the Pequod country, desolating and destroying every- 
where, till nearly the whole tribe was exterminated. About 
two hundred survived, some of whom were kept as slaves by 
the English, while the rest lived scattered among the other 
Indian tribes. Their chief, Sasacus, fled to the Mohawks, by 
whom he was killed, and the nation of Pequods ceased 
to exist. 



VI.] NEW HAVEN. 87 

CHAPTER VI. 

THE SMALLER NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 
Neiu Haven (i) — Providence and Rhode Island (2) — Rlaine (3). 

I. New Haven. — Besides the three more important Puri- 
tan colonies, there were other small settlements in the same 
neighbourhood. All of these joined themselves sooner or 
later to the larger colonies. But some remained separate 
long enough to make it necessary that we should know some- 
thing of their history. The most important of these was 
New Haven. This was founded by a small body of men 
chiefly from London, some of them of good birth and edu- 
cation. They wished to establish a state which should in 
all its arrangements make the Bible its rule of life. For 
this object, after a short stay in Boston, they settled them- 
selves, in 1638, at a place called Quinipiac on the coast, 
thirty miles to the west of the river Connecticut. Soon 
afte*- they changed the name to New Haven. For a 
year they lived without any fixed constitution, thinking 
it would be better to get some experience before they 
took the decisive step of forming a government. At the 
end of that time they proceeded to settle a system of gov- 
ernment. As in Massachusetts, none but church members 
were to be freemen. They appointed twelve men, who were 
in their turn to choose seven who should draw up a constitu- 
tion. The next year the freemen elected a Governor and 
four Deputies, and it was resolved that the whole body of 
freemen should meet once a year to transact public business. 
By 1641 the state had increased to three townships. Two 
small independent settlements had sprung up near, called 



88 THE SMALLER NEW ENGLAND COLONIES, [chap. 

Guilford and Milford. These were like New Haven in their 
general principles and system of government. In 1643 they 
voluntarily joined themselves to New Haven. It now be- 
came necessary to introduce the system of representatives. 
Accordingly a government was formed very like that of 
Massachusetts. There was a Governor, a Deputy-Governor, 
and a body of Assistants elected by all the freemen, and a 
body of representatives, two from each town. These were to 
meet once a year. Important lawsuits were to be tried by 
the Assistants, small cases by Magistrates elected by the iree- 
men in each town. The whole number of householders in 
the five towns amounted to a hundred and twcnty-two. The 
most noticeable point about New Haven was the wealth of 
its inhabitants, which was greater than in any of the neigh- 
bouring states. The town of New Haven was the handsom- 
est and best built in New England, and some of the inhabi- 
tants displeased the people of Massachusetts by the size 
and costliness of their houses. 

2. Providence and Rhode Island. — When Ro:rer Williams 
was driven out of Massachuseits, he established himself 
with a small band of followers at a place which they called 
Providence, at the head of Narragansett Bay. In 1640 we 
find the first record of any regular government among them. 
The colony then contained thirty-nine members. All their 
affairs were managed by five men, called Arbitrators. There 
does not seem to have been any fixed code of laws, nor any 
regular rules for the choice of these Arbitrators. Another 
settlement much like this sprang up in an island near 
Providence, called by its occupants Rhode Island. This 
was founded by some of Mrs. Hutchinson's followers when 
they were banished from Massachusetts. Here too there was 
at first no fixed code of laws. Affairs were managed by a 
Judge and three Assistants chosen by the whole people. In 
1639 the settlement broke up into two independent bodies, 



VI.] rnOVIDENCE AND RHODE ISLAND. 89 

Newport and Portsmouth, but they were joined together 
a;|aia in 1640. Tlie whole settlement by that time contained 
about fifty inhabitants, and a more regular system of govern- 
ment was introduced. Public affairs were to be managed 
by a Governor, a Deputy-Governor, and four Assistants. The 
Governor and two Assistants were to be chosen from one of 
the towns, the Deputy-Governor and the other Assistants 
from the other. Neither here nor in Rhode Island v/as it 
necessary that freemen should be church members. In 1644 
Roger Williams returned to England and got from the Com- 
missioners for Plantations a patent incorporating Providciice, 
Portsmouth, and Newport into one colony, with full power 
to make their own laws and constitution. Another town 
called Warwick was at once added to these. A President and 
four Assistants, one from each town, were chosen. In 1647 
a very peculiar system of making laws was introduced. Si.x 
Deputies were chosen by each township ; these formed the 
General Court. Either this Court, or any of the towns at a 
public meeting of the townsmen, might propose a law ; this 
proposal was then sent round to the four towns, and all the 
fieemen might vote for or against it. The votes were then 
collected, and, if the law was connrmctl by a majority, it was 
passed : if not, it fell to the ground. 1 hus, no doubt, they 
hoped to give every man a direct share in making the laws, 
without putting all the inhabitants to the trouble of attending 
a general meeting. In the same year a code of laws was 
drawn up. Unlike the codes of the other New England 
states, this resembled the English law, and was evidently 
drawn up by some one familiar with that system. It is also 
noteworthy that the General Court sent persons accused 
of treason to England for trial. This was almost the 
only instance in which any of .the New England colonies 
invited the mother country to interfere with its internal 
afiairs. The next year disputes broke out. Coddington, the 



90 THE SMALLER NEW ENGLAND COLONIES, [chap. 

head of one party, went over to England, and returned with 
a patent constituting Newport and Portsmouth a separate 
state. This arrangement was strongly objected to by the 
otlier towns, and also by many of the inhabitants of Newport 
and Portsmouth. They beheved that Coddington wished 
to join them to Massachusetts, and they disliked that scheme. 
Many of them were Baptists, and severe laws had lately been 
passed against that sect in Massachusetts, and some of them 
who had gone thither from Rhode Island had been flogged 
by order of the magistrates. The feud between Coddington 
and his opponents lasted three years, and each refused to 
acknowledge the authority of the other party as lawful. At 
last, in 1654, they were reconciled by Roger Williams. By 
his persuasion the four townships reunited under the patent 
of 1644. Williams himself was elected Pres'dent. The 
management of affairs was handed over to the General Court 
of six deputies from each town, and the old code of laws was 
declared to be in force. 

3. Maine. — In 1639 Gorges obtained from the King a 
charter, making him a proprietor of the province of Maine in 
New England. All the colonies that we have as yet consi- 
dered were formed, either like Virginia and Massachusetts, 
by regular companies, or else like Plymouth and Connecticut, 
by bodies of men bound together by their own voluntary 
agreement for this purpose. There was however another class 
of colonies, dependent on a single proprietor or a small num- 
ber of proprietors. In these cases, the King by a charter gave 
certain rights and powers to the proprietor, and he in his 
turn gave certain rights to the inhabitants. It will be better 
to consider this subject more fully when we come to the im- 
portant proprietary colonies of Maryland, Pennsylvania, and 
Carolina. The grant to Gorges included all the land 
between the Piscataqua and Kennebec rivers, as far as a 
hundred and twenty miles from the sea. His charter gave 



VI.] NEW HAMPSHIRE. 91 

him almost kingly power over this territory. With the con- 
sent of the freeholders he could enact laws. By his own autho- 
rity he could establish law courts, levy taxes, raise troops, 
and make war. The colony contained two settlements, York 
and Saco, and about three hundred citizens. Nevertheless 
Gorges, who seems to have had more activity than wisdom, 
drew up a most elaborate constitution, with enough of officials 
for the government of a great Empire. The settlement of 
York alone was to be governed by a Mayor, twelve Aldermen, 
and twenty-four Common Coi ncillors. Gorges never visited 
his colony, and before long the ^etulers threw aside this cum- 
brous government, and established a simpler system for them- 
selves. Little is known of the character and position of the 
earlier settlers in Maine. But as Gorges was no friend to 
the Puritans, and a strong parcizan of the King, we may be 
almost sure that his settlers differed both in religion and 
politics from their neighbours in Massachusetts and Plymouth. 
4. New Hampshire. — Several scattered settlements had 
been formed to the north and east of Massachusetts, in the 
neighbourhood of the Piscataqua. Some of these were 
formed by settlers under the Plymouth Company ; others by 
the partisans of Mrs. Hutchinson, who had been driven from 
Massachusetts. It is not worth while to trace the history 
of the struggles for jurisdiction. At one time there were 
not less than twelve distinct jurisdictions east of the Hud- 
son River, including the principal colonies of which account 
has already been given ; but before the Restoration these 
had been consolidated into six. The settlements on the 
Piscataqua were the beginning of what, after a long contest 
for jurisdiction and many changes, became the royal prov- 
ince of New Hampshire. In one way these small settle- 
ments, to the east and north of Massachusetts, in what are 
now the States of Maine and New Hampshire, had an im- 
portant effect. They prevented New England from being 



92 THE NEW ENGLAND CONFEDERATION, [chap. 

exclusively Puritan. Even the General Court of Massa- 
chusetts, which we have seen ferociously repressing dissent 
within their limits, exhibited a statesmanlike appreciation 
of the impolicy of enforcing their religious views on commu- 
nities of a different origin and constitution ; and when the 
Piscataqua settlements were for a period, commencing with 
164!, annexed to Massachusetts as an integral part of the 
colony, neither the freemen nor the deputies of this district 
were required to be church members. 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE NEW ENGLAND CONFEDERATION. 

General vietv of New England ( i ) — "relations between PlymoiitJi. and 
Ji/assackiiselts (2) — danger from the French settlers (T,)—froni the 
Dutch (4) — the Canfederation (5) — the Commonzaealth (6) — in- 
ternal disturbances {J )—Chu>-ch-government{?>)— troubles withthe 
Dutch (9) — dealings zuith the French (loj — 'with the Indians (11). 

I. General view of Nev/ England. — So far we have con- 
sidered the various English colonies to the north of the 
Hudson as separate provinces ; we may now treat them as 
divisions of a single country, applying to all of them together 
the name of New England. The whole territory of New 
England extended about two hundred and fifty miles along 
the coast. Excepting the towns on the Connecticut, there 
were no settlements more than eight or ten miles from the 
sea. The whole EngHsh population amounted to about 
twenty-six thousand, of whom fifteen thousand belonged to 
Massachusetts. The laws, customs, and manners of life 
throughout all the colonies were much alike ; all, except the 
small settlements on the Piscataqua and eastward, were com- 
posed mainly of Puritans. In none were there any very rich 
or very poor, or any class of wealthy landed gentry. Every- 
where there were laws providing for the teaching of children. 



VII.] PLYMOUTH AND MASSACIIUSET'IS. 93 

Grown-up citizens too were subject to strict public discipline. 
Expense in dress and habits likely to lead to disorder, such 
as card-playing and drinking healths, were forbidden. As 
the soil and climate of all the colonies was much alike, so was 
their industry and commerce. The chief exports were corn, 
salt, fish, and timber. In Massachusetts shipbuilding was a 
thriving business, while Plymouth depended more on trade 
with the Indians in fur and skins, and from an early time 
had trading houses up several of the rivers. The most im- 
portant point of likeness however which ran through all 
the states, was their system of townships and churches. 
Each town was a society by itself, managing the chief part 
of its own affairs by public meetings of the whole body of 
townsmen, and by officers elected at these meetings. The 
police, the public roads, and the relief of the poor were all 
under the control of the separate townships, although if 
they neglected their duties, they could be admonished, and 
even fined, by the colonial government. Moreover, when the 
colony levied a tax, it only declared that each town must pay 
a certain amount, and left the townsmen to settle how the 
payment should be divided among individuals. At the same 
time each town had a church of its ,own, and the congrega- 
tion was for the most identical with the township. Under 
this system every freeman gained a certain amount of prac- 
tical training in public affairs. 

2. Relations between Plymouth and Massachusetts. — 
With this likeness of habits and institutions running 
through all the colonies, it was but natural that they should 
torm some sort of political union. Till 163S the two ori- 
ginal colonics, Plymouth and Massachusetts, had little to do 
with one another, nor was that little always friendly. In 
1634 one Hocking, with a vessel belonging to Lord Say and 
Sele, went to trade up the Kennebec. The men of Ply- 
mouth claimed the exclusive riiiht of trading there, and 



94 THE NEW ENGLAND CONFEDERATIOyr. [chap. 

, resisted. A quarrel followed, in which Hocking shot one of 
his opponents and was himself killed. The matter was 
taken up by the Court of Massachusetts. As neither Hock- 
ing nor the ship came from Massachusetts, this was a sort 
of claim to deal with all questions which affected the peace 
of New England. After some discussion it was decided 
that Hocking had only himself to blame. This does not 
seem to have caused any ill-feeling between the states, as 
immediately afterwards Plymouth proposed to Massachu- 
setts to establish a joint trading house on the Connecticut. 
There were also disputes about boundaries, but these were 
settled in a friendly way. 

3. Danger from the French settlers.— The first definite 
proposal for an union between the colonies was made in 
1638 ; the reasons for it were plain enough. There was 
the danger alv/ays to be feared from the Indians. There 
was also the possibility of encroachments by the Eng- 
lish Government. If the King conquered the Parliament, 
New England was almost sure to be one of his first victims. 
Danger also threatened from two other quarters. The 
French had by this time established themselves in Canada 
and in the country now called Nova Scotia, then Acadia. 
The city of Quebec had been founded in 1608, and, under the 
energetic government of Cardinal Richelieu, the great French 
minister, the colony had giown and prospered. Indeed, it is 
likely that, if the settlement of Massachusetts had been 
delayed for a few years, the whole territory north of the 
Hudson would have been seized by the French. The Eng- 
lish and French settlers soon fell out. In 1613 Argall, who 
afterwards so misconducted himself as Governor of Virginia, 
had, without provocation,"* attacked and destroyed two of the 
French settlements. In 1629, when England and France 
were at war, a small English fleet, under a brave sea cantain 
David Kirk, raptured Quebec, and destroyed or took all the 



vii.] THE CONFEDERATION. 95 

French settlements on the American coast. But before the 
capture was made peace had been declared, on the condition 
that everything taken after April 24, 1629, should be given 
back. Accordingly the captured territory was restored to 
France. In 1631, though England and France were at 
peace, the New Englanders heard that the French colonists 
were about to attack them, and made ready to resist. 
In the next year a French ship fell on a trading station 
belonging to Plymouth, and carried off goods worth 500/. 

4. From the Dutch. — Another European settlement threat- 
ened New England from the opposite side. In i6oq Henry 
Hudson, one of the greatest of English seamen, had, in the 
service of the Dutch, explored the coast to the south-west of 
Massachusetts Bay and sailed up the river which now bears 
his name. The Dutch, who had just cast off the rule of 
Spain, were then one of the most enterprising nations in 
Europe. They soon occupied the country between Delaware 
Bay and the Connecticut, and gave it the name of New 
Netherlands. In 1627 they sent a friendly embassy to Ply- 
mouth. But as soon as New England began to extend itself 
towards the Connecticut the Dutch thought that their terri- 
tory was being encroached on, and disputes arose. Twice 
the Dutch sent vessels to drive the English away from the 
Connecticut, but each time without success. Besides this, 
small disputes arose ever and again between the Dutch and 
the English on the borders. 

5. The Confederation. — As was natural, Connecticut, being 
one of the weakest colonies and nearest to the Dutch, was 
most anxious for some sort of league among the New Eng- 
land colonies. In September, 1642, proposals from Connec- 
ticut were laid before the court of Massachusetts, In the 
next year an union of Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connec- 
ticut, and New Haven, was formed. Maine, Rhode Island, 
and Providence applied for admission, but were refused ; 



95 THE NEW ENGLAND CONFEDERATIOh\ [chap. 

the first Becauss its political system v\'as diiTercnt from that 
of the united colonies, the others on the ground of their dis- 
orderly condition. The form of the union was a Confede- 
ration. Each colony, that is to say, was to preserve its full 
independence in all internal matters, while at the same time 
there was to be a supreme government over all the colonies, 
with full control over their dealings with foreign states. Sucli 
an union is, looked at from within, a group of separate states ; 
looked at from without, it is a single state. The govern- 
ment was entrusted to eight Federal Commissioners, two 
from each colony. The great defect of the Confederation was 
the superiority of TJassachusetts to the other colonies. Its 
population was about fifieen thousand, that of the three 
smaller states scarcely three thousand each. In considera- 
tion of this it was agreed that if the Confederation went to 
war, Massachusetts was to send a hundred men for every 
forty-five from each of the other colonies. Besides, as the 
taxes levied for the defence of the Coirfederacy were to be 
proportioned to the population of each colony, Massachusetts 
had in two ways to bear the heaviest share of the common 
burden. At the same time the constitution only gave an 
equal share in the managem.ent of aftairs to eacl\ colony. 
The result of this was that Massachusetts repeatedly tried to 
exercise more power than the articles of the union gave her, 
and that the harmony, and even the existence, of the Con- 
federation was thereby endangered. 

6. The Commonwealth. — As might have been expected. 
New England was a gamer by the victory of the Parlia- 
ment over the King. In 1642 the House of Commons 
passed a resolution freeing New England from the Import 
and export duties levied on the other colonies. Two years 
later the Court of Massachusetts made a law that anyone 
who should try to raise a party there for the King should 
be treated as an offender against the state. When the 



VII] INTERNAL DISTURBANCES. 97 

colonial commissioners apppointed by Parliament seized 
a Royalist vessel in Boston harbour, the question arose 
whether this act should be allowed. After some discus- 
sion, the Court decided not to resist. Their chief ground 
was that it would be foolish to quarrel with Parliament, which 
was their best friend. At the same time, they made an 
important admission. It might be said, and it was said at 
a later time, that Parliament had no authority over the 
colonies, because they had no representatives in the House 
of Commons. As a matter of form, all the land in America 
was reckoned, when it was granted by the King, to be in 
the manor of East Greenwich. Accordingly tlie Coiu't of 
Massachusetts said that, as the colonists held their land in 
that manor, the parliamentary representatives of the borough 
or county which included that place, represented them also. 
In 1 65 1 Parliament demanded that Massachusetts should 
give up its charter and take another from them. For a year 
no notice was taken of this. At last the General Court of 
Massachusetts sent back a somewhat vague answer, setting 
forth all that the settlers had done and suffered in found- 
ing a bplony, and expressing a hope that no change would 
be made in its government. At this time, the General 
Court took a very 'ndependent step. It established a mint, 
and coined money. This practice lasted for thirty years. 
Cromwell himself, throughout his whole career as Protector, 
was a fast friend to New England. Twice he proposed to 
the settlers to change their abode. After his desolation 
of Ireland he wislied to move them in there, and at a some- 
what later time he proposed that they should emigrate to 
Jamaica, which England had just taken from Spain. The 
colonists declined both these offers. 

7. Internal Disturbances. — As had happened with Morton 
and Ratcliffe, the severity of Massachusetts towards offenders 
raised up enemies against her in England. About i6j6 

H 



98 THE NEW ENGL A ND CON FED ERA TIQN. [chap. 

there came into New England one Gorton, a weak and hot- 
headed man, who held religious opinions disapproved of by 
the churches of Massachusetts. After getting into trouble 
in nearly every state in New England, at last, in 164 1, 
he settled near Providence on land that he had bought 
from Miantonomo, chief of the Narragansetts. Near this 
was a small independent settlement called Pawtuxet, founded 
by some of Roger Williams's followers. These men com- 
plained of Gorton as a troublesome neighbour, and asked 
Massachusetts to protect them against him. Besides this, 
two Indians came to Boston and declared that the land 
which Miantonomo had sold was really theirs, and offered 
to submit themselves and their territory to Massachusetts. 
The Court of Massachusetts summoned Gorton and his 
companions to appear before them and answer these charges. 
Gorton, although he does not seem to have been alto- 
gether in the wrong, sent back, not a temperate answer, 
but a violent attack on the government and religion of 
Massachusetts. Thereupon the Court of Massachusetts, 
always severe in dealing with those who differed from 
it, seized Gortoa and brought him to Boston in irons. 
There he took to preaching his religious doctrines, and got 
so many disciples that the Court was glad to hurry him out 
of the country, threatening him with death if he returned. 
He then lodged an appeal with the Commissioners for 
Foreign Plantations. They sent out orders that Gorton and 
his friends should be allowed to settle peaceably on the land 
which they had bought from the Indians. Massachusetts had 
already sent an agent, one Winslow, a leading man from the 
colony of Plymouth, to plead their cause against Gorton in 
England. When this order came out, they sent back an answer 
to be presented by Winslow. In this they boldly declared that 
the English Government ought not to receive appeals against 
the Colonial Governments, and that it was impossible for men 



VII.] CHURCH GOVERNMENT. 99 

in-England to know what was good for a distant settlement. 
The Commissioners for Plantations wrote a very temperate 
answer, promising not to trespass on the lawful power of the 
Massachusetts Government. At the same time they held 
out on the main point, and bade the General Court allow 
Gorton to live in peace. This was done, and the dis- 
turbance ended. Other inhabitants of New England besides 
Gorton had grievances which they laid before the English 
Government. Many of the inhabitants of Massachusetts, 
who stood high in position and character, had no share in the 
government, because their religious opinions would not allow 
them to join any of the New England churches. In 1646 
a party, small in numbers, but including some of the best 
and ablest men in the colony, drew up a paper which set 
forth the above grievance, and laid it before the General 
Court. As soon as the Massachusetts settlers left the Church 
of England, they betook themselves to Independency, and 
Presbyterianism never found any favour with the generality 
of them. The conflict between the two sects was now raging 
in England, and the result seemed doubtful. The petitioners 
were for the most part Presbyterians, and the fears of tbe 
Independents were aroused. The petitioners were brought 
before the Court, accused of having made false and scan- 
dalous charges against the churches and Government of Mas- 
sachusetts, and fined. Afterwards a rumour got about that 
they meant to appeal to the English Government. Their 
papers were seized, and found to contain treasonable matter, 
whereupon the writers were again heavily fined. At last they 
made their way to England ; but by that time the Inc!e[)L'nd- 
ents had the upper hand, and nothing came of the appeal. 

8. Church Government. — In the great controversy in 
England between the Presbyterians and Independents many 
of the chief writers on the Independent side came from New 
England. At the same time, the New Englandors did not 

H 2 



loo THE NEW EN-GLAND CONFEDERATION, [chap. 

keep to the pure Independent system. They found that 
their churches were threatened by enemies both in America 
and England, and would be in danger unless there was 
some union between them. In 1648 a meeting of all the 
churches in Massachusetts was held. It sat for a fortnight, 
and drew up a system of Church Discipline. This provided 
that similar meetings should be held from time to time. 
These were to have the power of advising and reproving the 
different churches. Any offending church might be refused 
a place in these meetings, and if it should be obstinate, 
might be handed over for punishment to the General Court. 
9. Troubles with the Dutch. — Till 1646 there was no open 
quan-el between the Confederation and its Dutch neighbours. 
In that year, Peter Stuyvesant, a man of high spirit and great 
courage, was appointed Governor of New Netherlands. One 
of his first acts was to seize a Dutch smuggling vessel in New 
Haven harbour. The men of New Haven resented this as an 
outrage, and Stuyvesant made matters worse by addressing 
a letter to " Newhaven in New Netherlands," as if laying 
claim to the territory. He then proposed to refer the dispute 
to.the Governors of Plymouth and Massachusetts. The Court 
of Massachusetts thought that the question would be better 
referred to the Federal Commissioners. Stuyvesant demurred 
to this, and for four years the question remained open. In 
1650 Stuyvesant himself came to Hartford in Connecticut to 
settle the matter in dispute. His chief complaint was tliat, 
by occupying Connecticut and New Haven, the English had 
encroached on Dutch territory. The grievances of the 
English were certain acts of dishonesty on the part of Dutch 
traders at Hartford. They also accused the Dutch of assist- 
ing criminals to escape from New England. After some 
discussion, arbitrators were appointed, who settled the ques- 
tion in dispute, and fixed a boundary line between the Dutch 
and English territories. Disputes soon broke out again. In 



VII.] TROUBLES WITH THE DUTCH. lot 

the next year war was declared between England and 
Holland. Rumours began to run through the English settle- 
ments that the Dutch were conspiring with the Indians for a 
general attack on New England. Whether there was any 
good ground for this belief it is impossible now to say. But 
only twenty-four years earlier the Dutch had cruelly mas- 
sacred a body of English traders at Amboyna, an island in 
the Moluccas. This had roused the English people to a 
great pitch of fury. With this fresh in their memory, the New 
Englanders could hardly be blamed for somewhat readily 
believing the charges against the Dutch. So strong was their 
feeling that three of the four colonies wanted to declare war. 
Massachusetts alone resisted. That colony was at once the 
most powerful and the least exposed to the Dutch, and there- 
fore had least to fear. Accordingly, presuming on their 
greater strength, they declared through their commissioners, 
that, in spite of the decision of the Federal Court, they 
would net take part in the war. When the other commis- 
sioners represented that this was a breach of their agreement, 
the Massachusetts commissioners declined to answer them, 
and asked them to proceed to other business. The commis- 
sioners refused to do this till the dispute was settled. Mas- 
sachusetts still held out. In their distress, Connecticut and 
New Haven applied to England for help. Cromwell replied 
to the appeal by sending a fleet, with a land force on board. 
Connecticut and New Haven at once raised forces to assist 
them. Massachusetts would take no part in the war, but 
allowed the English commander to raise 500 volunteers in 
their territory. Before operations could begin, news came of 
the utter defeat of the Dutch in the English Channel. This 
ended the war, and we hear no more of the disputes with the 
New Netherlands. The affair served to show the weakness 
of the Confederation, and ho.v utterly its affairs were under the 
control of Massachusetts. 



102 TJJE NEIV ENGLAAD CONFEDERATION, [chap. 

lo. Dealings with the French. — About the time when the 
Confederation was founded, a sort of civil war was going 
on in the French settlement of Acadia between two rival 
claimants for the governorship, La Tour and D'Aulney. 
In 1642 La Tour made overtures to Massachusetts, ask- 
ing for help, and offering in return a free trade between 
the New England ports and those under his jurisdiction. 
He also appealed to the religious sympathies of the New 
Englanders, as he was a Protestant and D'Aulney a Roman 
Catholic, Massachusetts declined to make any alliance 
with La Tour, but allowed him to raise soldiers in her 
territory, and to charter vessels in her harbours. In return 
he granted them free trade with his ports. In consequence 
of this proceeding, a law was made at the next meeting of 
the Federal Commissioners, forbidding any state to allow a 
levy in its territory without the leave of the whole Con- 
federation. Soon after La Tour had been to Massachusetts 
D'Aulney also tried to make an alliance with that colony. No 
assistance was given him, but a firm peace was made, and it 
was arranged that there should be free trade between their 
territories. Soon after a ship which was sailing from 
Massachusetts with supphes for La Tour, was seized by 
D'Aulney, and the crew severely treated. This led to a 
quarrel, but the Federal Commissioners interfered, and 
friendship was restored. La Tour was then defeated and 
driven out. The men of Boston fitted him out with a ship, but 
he ungratefully set the English part of the crew on shore in 
the dead of winter, and sailed off on a voyage of piracy. The 
war ended with the accidental death of D'Aulney and the 
establishment of La Tour as Governor ; but after his mis- 
conduct the New Englanders had nothing more to do with 
the quarrel. In 1650 the Governor of New France made pro- 
posals to New England for an offensive alliance against the 
Iroquois, or Five Nations, the most powerful and warlike of 



vu.] DEALINGS WITH THE INDIANS. 103 

all the Indian races. Hitherto these Indians had not had 
much to do with the English, but they had never shown any 
hostile feeling towards them. They had recently made a 
fierce and successful onslaught on the Abenaquis, a nation 
allied to the French, and including many Christian converts. 
The New Englanders refused to have anything to do with 
the quarrel, and at a later time the Iroquois proved valuable 
allies against the French. 

II. With the Indians. — The dealings of the Confedera- 
tion with the Indians, like those with the Dutch, showed 
the undue power of Massachusetts. Miantonomo, the Nar- 
ragansett chief, was for some time suspected of designs 
against the English. This charge rested chiefly on the 
evidence of Uncas, the chief of the Mohegans. He and 
his people had always been fast friends to the English, 
and were enemies to the Narragansetts. Miantonomo too 
was the friend and ally of Gorton, and this no doubt 
embittered many of the settlers against him. In 1642. the 
cjuestion of declaring war on him came before the Federal 
Commissioners. Massachusetts, in opposition to the other 
three States, was for peace, and prevailed. Soon after 
war broke out between Miantonomo and Uncas. The for- 
mer was defeated and taken prisoner. Uncas consulted 
the Federal Commissioners as to how he should deal with 
his captive. Their advice was that Miantonomo should 
be put to death, but without torture. Uncas followed this 
counsel. Next year the war between the Mohegans and 
the Narragansetts was renewed. The Confederacy at once 
prepared for war — this time without any dispute. The Narra- 
gansetts, overawed by this, came to terms, and a treaty was 
made. By this the Narragansetts bound themsjslves to pay 
a yearly tribute to the Confederacy. But the tribute was 
irregularly paid, and had to be extorted by force. It was 
even rumoured that the Narraganseits were trying to bring 



134 THE NEW ENGLAND CONFEDERATION, [chap. 

down the Iroquois upon the English. At length, in 1650, 
the Confederacy sent a small force into the country of the 
Narragansetts and seized Pesacus, their chief. This struck 
such terror into them that for a while they left the English 
in security. Danger soon threatened the English from 
another tribe, the Nyantics, allies of the Narragansetts. 
They it was with whom the Dutch were thought to be 
plotting against New England. Moreover, they had molested 
some Indians who were friendly to the English. As JNIassa- 
chusetts refused to believe the charge against the Dutch, 
it was but reasonable that she should oppose the war against 
the Nyantics, and she did so. This time, however, she was 
overruled, and a force was sent out under the command 
of one Willard, a Massachusetts man. Owing to his slack- 
ness the Indians were allowed to retire into a strong posi- 
tion, and the troops went home without striking a blow. 
Thus it was again seen how useless it was for the Con- 
federacy to attempt any measure which was disapproved of 
by Massachusetts. 

Another dispute arose in which Massachusetts showed 
the same overbearing temper. As we have seen, the Govern- 
ment of Connecticut had bought and maintained a fort at 
Saybrook. To repay them for this, they charged toll on all 
goods carried up or down the river Connecticut on which the 
fort stood. The men of Springfield, a town on the river 
within the boundary of Massachusetts, refused to pay this 
toll, and the Government of Massachusetts backed them in 
their refusal. The dispute was referred to the Federal 
Commissioners, who decided in favour of Connecticut. The 
Court of Massachusetts then drew up an answer making 
proposals very dangerous to the Confederacy. They 
suggested that Massachusetts should, in consideration of her 
greater size and services, be allowed three Conmiissioners. 
They also proposed to lessen the power of the Federal 



VII.] QUAKERS IN NEW ENGLAND. 105 

Commissioners by limiting their meetings to one in every 
three years, and by a law that, if any colony chose not to 
follow the advice of the Commissioners, this should be con- 
sidered no breach of the agreement, and no power sUnuld be 
employed to enforce such advice. At the same time they 
protested against the judgment of the Commissioners about 
the toll. The Commissioners refused to alter their decision. 
Thereupon the Court of Massachusetts, in retaliation, imposed 
a duty on all goods imported into their territory from any of 
the three other colonies. The Commissioners drew up a 
remonstrance, and appealed to Massachusetts whether such 
conduct " agreed with the law of love and the tenor and 
import of the Articles of Confederation." In the next year 
Massachusetts took off the duty, and the dispute ended. 

12. Quakers in New England. — About this time a religious 
sect made its first appearance in New England, which after- 
wards played an important part in American history. These 
were the Quakers, or, as they called and still call themselves, 
the Friends. Their founder was one George Fox, a cobbler. 
The very first members of the sect were for the most part wild 
and untaught fanatics. They went to every part of the world, 
to Germany, the East, and America, preaching their doc- 
trines, and often annoying and insulting those who would 
not hear them. They even went to Italy and Turkey in the 
hope of converting the Pope and the Sultan. In 1656, some 
Quakers having appeared in the colony, a law was passed 
against this "cursed sect of hasreticks." This law pro- 
vided that all Quakers coming into the colony should be 
flogged and confined at hard labour ; that any shipmaster 
bringing them into the colony, or any person entertaining 
them, or having their books or defending their opinions, 
should be punished. In October of 1657, it was ordered 
that every male Quaker who should return into the jurisdic- 
tion after being sent away, should lose one ear for the first 



io6 THE NEW ENGLAND CONFEDERATION, [chap. 

offence, the other ear for the second offence ; and every 
"woman Quaker" so oflending should be whipped. For 
the third offence, every Quaker, "he or she," should have 
the tongue pierced with a hot iron and kept at hard labor 
till removed from the colgny. Nevertheless the heresy 
spread, and in October, 1658, upon the recommendation 
of the Commissioners for the United Colonies, banishment 
on pain of death was enacted. During the next two years, 
four persons were executed for returning after banishment ; 
but at last public opinion showed itself so strongly, that, in 
spite of the persistence of the Church Elders, the General 
Court gave way. They did not confess themselves in the 
wrong by formally repealing the former law, but they prac- 
tically set it aside, by ordering that Quakers should be 
flogged in every town in the colony. From that time no 
more were put to death. In Plymouth and New Haven 
Quakers were also flogged. In Connecticut, thanks to Win- 
throp, they were almost free from persecution. In Rhode 
Island alone they escaped it altogether, and found such a 
refuge as the early Puritans had found in Holland. The 
Federal Commissioners wrote to the Government of Rhode 
Island to remonstrate with them on their conduct. In their 
answer the Rhode Islanders defended themselves by saying 
that they had found that, where the Quakers are " suffered to 
declare themselves freely, there they least desire to come ; 
and that they arc likely to gain more followers by the con- 
ceit of their patient sufferings than by consent to their per- 
nicious sayings," 



viii.]MASSACnUSETTS AND THE RESTORATION. 107 



CHAPTER VIII. 

NEW ENGLAND FROM THE RESTORATION TO THE 
REVOLUTION OF 1688. 

Alassachusdts and the Restoration (i) — commissioners sent out from 
England (2) — the other New England colonies (3) — union 0/ 
New Haven aftd Connecticut (4) — state of New England (5) — 
war with King Philif' (6) — ^var with the Tarrateens (7) — Nnv 
Hampshire and Maine made separate colonies (8) — the Massa- 
chusetts charter annulled (9) — Ne^u England under James II. 
(10) — the revolution in N'eiv England (ll). 

I, Massachusetts and the Restoration. — At the Restora- 
tion the management of the colonies was given to a special 
Board called the Council for the Plantations. A few months 
later twelve Privy Councillors were appointed as a Com- 
mittee to settle the government of New England. No im- 
mediate change took place. But it was at once clear that 
the New Englanders feared danger from the restored 
monarchy. Rumours reached them from their friends in 
England that Virginia and the West India Islands were for- 
bidden to trade with them, and that a Governor over all the 
New England colonics was about to be sent out from Eng- 
land. Moreover the Quakers had been laying their griev- 
ances before the King. The Court of Massachusetts at once 
sent over addresses to the King and the Parliament. In both 
they expressed a hope that they might keep that freedom in 
quest of which they had faced such toils and dangers. They 
also pointed out the extreme obstinacy and insolence of the 
Quakers, and declared that if they would but have promised 
to stay away from Massachusetts, they would have been 
pardoned. The address to the King was answered by a 



loS FliOM THE RESTORATION TO i6SS. [chap. 

letter with general promises of friendship and good treat- 
ment. At the same time it forbade the colonists to inflict 
any bodily punishment on the Quakers, and ordered that 
they should be sent over to England for trial. This order 
was disregarded. By obeying it the colonists would have 
given up their right of trying all offences in the colony, a 
point on which they always stood firm. Two years later the 
law condemning Quakers to be flogged was re-enacted, 
though it was granted as a favour that if should only be 
inflicted in three towns. The position of the settlers now 
became a difficult one. They wished to stand well with the 
King, and at the same time to be on their guard against 
encroachment on their rights. In the follo'Aing March (1661) 
the Court of Massachusetts compelled John Eliot, a leading 
minister, to apologize for a book he had written teaching 
doctrines hostile to monarchy. Soon after, they drew up a 
very important paper. It was a formal declaration, setting 
forth the rights of the settlers and the du ies which they 
owed to the Crown. It declared that the whole body of free- 
men had power to add to their own number, to appoint 
officers, and to carry on government ; and that there was no 
appeal from them, unless their laws were contrary to those 
of England. They claimed the right to make war in defence 
of their own country, and declared that any tax injurious to 
the colony and contrary to any of its laws was an infringe- 
ment of their rights. In August the King was formally pro- 
claimed in Massachusetts. The other New EngLnd colonies 
soon did likewise. New Haven, however, was so slow about 
it that the Court of Massachusetts at length warned the 
government of the danger of delay. During the same year 
an event happened which gave the New Englanders some 
cause for uneasiness. Just before the King was restored, 
two of the judges who had sentenced Charles I., Goft'e and 
Whalley, came out to America. For some while they lived 



\in.}MASSACHUSETTS AND THE RESTORATION. 109 

op^nl)' in the neighbourhood of Boston, and were well 
received by many of the chief men. But in November 
1660, when they had been out about three months, lidiugs 
came from England that all the King's judges were to be 
pardoned except seven, of whom Goffe and Whalley were 
two. Thereupon they fled to New Haven. In March, orders 
came out to seize them, but their friends hid them ; no hard 
matter in a wild country. They escaped from their pur- 
suers, lived in hiding, and died peaceably in New England. 
Though the authorities in Massachusetts do not seem to 
have furthered their escape, or to have failed in any way 
to obey the orders from England, yet the matter might 
easily have been turned against the colony by its enemies. 
With all these causes for alarm, the Court of Massachusetts 
resolved to send over two men to appear on behalf of 
the colony before the King. They chose Simon Brad- 
street, one of the original settlers, and John Norton,* a 
leading minister. They were graciously received by the 
King, and brought back a letter from him to the Court of 
Massachusetts. He promised to respect their patent and 
charter. At the same time he ordered that the right of 
voting should be given to all freeholders, whether they were 
Church-members or not, that the services of the Church of 
England should be allowed, that the colonists should take 
the oath of allegiance, and that for the future jus: ice should 
be administered in the King's name. The colonists would 
not have been injured by granting any of these demands, but 
they would have been giving up that right of self-government 
which they had so often claimed. They gave way so far 
that all legal papers were drawn up in the King's name, but 
they referred the other matters to a Committee, and notiiing 
was done about them. So indignant were the people at the 
matter, that they vented their wrath in abuse of Bradstreet 
and Norton. The latter died in a few months, broken- 



no FROM THE RESl ORATION TO 1688. [chap. 

hearted, as it was thought, at the ingratitude of his 
countrymen. 

2. Commissioners sent out from England. — For two 
years after the King's letter came out, Massachusetts had no 
important dealings with the home Government. But in 1664 
four Commissioners were sent out by the King to set matters 
in order in New England. Their chief instructions were to 
settle the disputes about boundaries, to remedy the grievances 
of those who were deprived of the rights of citizens, and to 
inquire into the truth of certain complaints brought by the 
Indians against the settlers. They had power to hear com- 
plaints and appeals, and to "proceed in all things for the 
providing for and settling the peace and security" of New 
England. They were also to " dispose the people to an 
entire submission and obedience to the King's government," 
and, if possible, to persuade them to give the King the right 
of naming the governor of the colony and the commander of 
the militia. At the same time there is nothing to show that 
this was to be carried out except by full consent of the 
colonists themselves. The only one of the Commissioners 
who had had any dealings with New England before was 
Samuel Maverick. He was one of the men who in the time 
of the Commonwealth had pleaded the cause of those who 
were not Church-members, and for this had been fined by 
the Court. His presence on the Commission may have served 
to alarm the colonists. In July 1664 the Commissioners 
arrived at Boston. Their first request was for help against 
New Netherlands, as the Dutch were then at war with 
England. This was granted. In obedience to the Co^miis- 
sioners, the law was repealed which required that freemen 
should be church members. The Court then drew up an 
address to the King. In this they set forth that their charter 
gave them the privilege of being governed by rulers of their 
own choosing, and that this- was taken from them by the 



VIII.] THE OTHER NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. iii 

appointment of the Commissioners. They also declared 
that to set up a government directly appointed by the 
King in the colony would increase taxation, impoverish 
the inhabitants, and thus destroy their trade and hurt 
England. During the whole stay of the Commissioners 
in Massachusetts they were engaged in petty quarrels 
and bickerings with the colonists. The Court showed 
a fixed determination not to comply with the demands 
of the King, while the Commissioners took no pains to 
make their requirements less unpleasant by a courteous 
and conciliatory manner. On the main point, whether 
the colony had complied with the King's instructions of 1662, 
the Commissioners could get no definite answer from the 
Court, in all the other New England colonies the Commis- 
sioners met with a friendly reception, and on their return the 
King wrote letters to Connecticut and Plymouth, praising 
them for their obedience, and contrasting it with the stubborn 
conduct of Massachusetts. 

3, The other New England Colonies —If Massachusetts 
seemed likely to lose by the Restoration, Rhode Island and 
Connecticut were gainers by it. Rhode Island had proclaimed 
the King before any other of the New England colonies. At 
the same time they sent over an agent to England to ask for 
a charter. Their exclusion from the New England confede- 
ration possibly told in their favour at the English Court. In 
July 1663, they received a charter constituting them a sepa- 
rate colony. The election of the Governor was left to the 
freemen of the colony, and the existing system of government- 
was in no way changed. The charter also gave full rehgious 
liberty to all sects. Connecticut met with like favour. This 
was probably due to the influence of its Governor, Winthrop, 
who himself came over to plead their cause. He was a man 
of good breeding and education, and seems to have in- 
gratiated himself with the King and his Lord Treasurer, 



112 FROM THE RESTORATION' TO i6S8. [chap. 

Clarendon. At the same time that the charter was granted 
to Rhode Island, Connecticut also received one confirming 
the existing constitution. These two charters were so care- 
lessly drawn up that the lands assigned to each colony over- 
lapped. Thus a dispute arose, which however was fortu- 
nately settled before either of the charters were sent out. 

4. Union of New Haven and Connecticut. — The Connec- 
ticut charter gave rise to more serious trouble. It included 
the whole territory of New Haven, and thus empowered Con- 
necticut to annex that colony. The people of New Haven had 
incurred the displeasure of the King in the matter of Goffe 
and Whalley, and it is not impossible that this charter was 
in part designed to punish them. When the people of New 
Haven learnt what had been done, they petitioned the King 
not to unite them to Connecticut. Winthrop, who was still 
in England, hearing of this petition, promised that no union 
should be made except by the free consent of New Haven. 
But the Government of Connecticut did not consider that 
Winthrop had any power to bind them by such a promise, 
and, when the charter arrived, they required the people of 
New Haven to submit. New Haven for a while held out, and 
was supported by the Federal Commissioners from Plymouth 
and Massachusetts. The union was at length brought about 
by the news that Commissioners were coming out from 
England. It was clearly better for New Haven to form part 
of a colony which had just got a liberal charter, than to face 
the Commissioners without any charter, and with the King's 
displeasure hanging over it. The Federal Commissioners 
represented this to the Government of New Haven, and in 
1664 the two colonies were united. This practically put an 
cud to the New England confederation. For the future the 
Commissioners only met once in three years, and we hear 
but little of their action in important matters. 

5. State of New England. — After the departure of the 



viii.] STATE OF NEW ENGLAND. 113 

Commissioners New England enjoyed a period of security 
and great prosperity. Under the Commonwealth, Puritans 
had been too well off in England to care to emigrate, and 
New England had not received many fresh settlers. But 
now the Act of Uniformity deprived some two thousand 
nonconforming ministers of the livings of which they had 
possessed themselves under the Commonwealth, and by 
leading many to seek refuge in New England, furnished the 
colonies with some of their ablest clergy. Trade also throve, 
in spite of th'e Navigation Act. No custom house was built ; 
and as all the officers of the colony, from the Governor 
downwards, were independent of the home Government, 
there- was little chance of an unpopular law being strictly 
put in force. Moreover the fire of London and the Dutch 
war so fully occupied the English Government that for a 
while it neglected colonial affairs. Yet the inhabitants of 
Massachusetts had much cause for uneasiness. From the 
outset their colony had only existed by the sufferance of the 
English Government. Its charter was merely the charter of 
a trading company. It gave no power to enact laws, to 
inflict punishment, to form alliances, or to make war. Mas- 
sachusetts had indeed been allowed to grow under this 
charter into a free and prosperous community, and it is no 
wonder that she should have been prepared to hold fast by 
privileges which she had so long enjoyed. Yet it was certain 
that in all that she had done she had exceeded and misused 
the powers granted her ; and no tribunal, however friendly, 
could help ruling that her charter was forfeited. Other 
things might, and for a while did, occupy the home Govern- 
ment ; but the blow was sure to come at last. Besides there 
was danger within the colony. Riches had increased, and 
the old Puritan severity of temper and principle had become 
M caker. A race of men had grown up, less attached to the 
iaeas and habits of their fathers, easily dazzled by the 

I 



114 FROM THE RESTORATION TO i6S8. [chap. 

greater splendour and grace of English life, and therefore 
inclined to look favourably on anything which drew the 
colony closer to the mother country. Even among those 
who were for holding fast to their independence, there were 
two parties. One was for a moderate and conciliatory 
policy ; the other opposed all concessions, and objected to 
sending over agents to England, or acknowledging the acts 
of trade as binding on the colonists. 

6. War with King Philip. — New England was soon 
threatened from another quarter. For the las! thirty years 
the settlers had been at peace with the Indians. Something 
had been done towards converting and civilizing them. In 
1643 Thomas Mayhew, a Massachusetts Pui'itan, obtained a 
grant of certain small islands off the coast of Plymouth, but 
forming no part of its territory. Here his son, a minister 
estabhshed a small settlement of Christian Indians. John 
Eliot followed his example, and before 1674 numerous 
villages had been formed in New England, inhabited by 
converts who lived by husbandry and handicrafts. The 
entire number of Christian Indians was estimated at three 
thousand six hundred. Yet little had been done to bring 
the whole race of Indians into friendly relations with the 
settlers. The missionaries had done their work by draw- 
ing out small bodies of Indians and separating them from 
the great mass, not by attempting to carry Christianity 
and civilization into the heart of the Indian country. Such 
an attempt would perhaps have been idle. The villages 
of praying Indians, as they were called, probably did some- 
thing to make the rest of the natives keep aloof from, the 
English. They saw that, in order to become Christians and 
friends of the white men, they must give up their free life of 
hunting, and take to ways that they looked on as disgraceful. 
They saw too that, even so, they could not really win the 
friendship or the respect of the English. The converted 
Indians too often lost the happiness of the savage, without 



Vlii.] WAR IViril KING PHILIP. 115 

gaining that which belongs to civilized life. The friendship 
between the Plymouth settlers and Massasoit lasted during 
his life. His two sons, as a token of respect for the English, 
took the names of Alexander and Philip. Yet after their 
father's death they were suspected of treacherous designs. 
During Alexander's reign no open war broke out, but the 
settlers, thinking that he was plotting against them, seized 
him and carried him by force to Boston, Soon after 
he died, and was succeeded by Philip, a man of great ability 
and courage. The Plymouth settlers had for some years 
been trying to weaken the Indians, by buying up their lands 
and leaving them only some necks of land running out into 
the sea, where, being surrounded by water on three sides, 
they could be more easily kept in check. In 1670 Philip 
was suspected of inti-igues with the Narragansetts against 
the English, and the Court of Plymouth demanded that he 
should give up his arms. He sent in seventy guns, and pro- 
mised the rest, but kept them. Soon after however he came 
himself to Plymouth, and made a treaty, by which he owned 
himself subject to the King of England and the Government 
of Plymouth, and promised not to make any war without 
the consent of the English. It may be doubted whether 
the Indians, in this and like treaties, understood clearly the 
nature of their own promises. In 1674 Sausamon, a 
Christian Indian, warned the English that Philip was plot- 
ting against them. Soon after Sausamon was killed by 
three Indians, employed, as was believed, by Philip. For 
this crime they were tried and executed at Plymouth. Philip 
and his subjects were not ready for an outbreak, but they 
saw that they were detected, and must strike at once or 
never. Accordingly, in the spring of 1675 they invaded the 
English territory. They did not march in a body, but, fol- 
lowing their own mode of warfare, fell upon the settlers in 
small parties wherever a chance offered. In spite of the 

I 2 



n6 FROM THE RESTORATION TO 1688. [chap. 

long peace with the Indians, the settlers had not neglected 
the means of defence. All the male inhabitants were bound 
to be provided with arms and ammunition, and they often 
met for military exercise. Moreover, through New England 
the traditions of Indian warfare, derived from the struggle with 
the Pequods, had served to prepare the younger generation 
for such a contest. But no drill can supply the want of actual 
practice in war, especially for irregular fighting in the forest, 
and for awhile it seemed as if the settlers would be worsted. 
If the Indians had only been united, it is not unlikely that 
the settlers would have been exterminated. But Philip had 
been hurried into war before his plots were ripe, and many 
of the Indians were taken by surprise, and were not ready 
for action. In July the settlers marched into the Narra- 
gansctts' country and compelled that tribe to make a treaty, 
whereby they promised to give no help to Philip or his 
people, but to kill or deliver up to the English any who 
might enter their territory. In the next winter the English 
seemed to have the enemy at their mercy. They hemmed in 
Philip on a narrow neck of land running out into the sea, 
where there seemed to be no escape. But Philip and his 
bravest warriors made their way to the mainland, either 
swimming or on rafts. Many who had hitherto stood aloof 
now took up arms, and ravaged the English country. In the 
words of a New England writer, " there was no safety to 
man, woman, ncr child ; to him who went out or to him who 
came in. Whether they were asleep or awake, whether they 
journeyed, laboured, or worshipped, they were in continual 
jeopardy." The settlers in their rage forgot all the restraints 
of justice and humanity. Some wished to massacre all the 
Christian Indians, lest they should turn traitors. In one 
town the magistrates refused to put to death two captive 
Indians on mere suspicion of their guilt. On Sunday, as the 
women of the place were coming away from their meeting- 



VI II.] WAR WITH KING PHILIP. w) 

, house, they fell on the two Indian prisoners in a body, and 
killed them. As winter came on the hopes of the Indians 
declined. They had been unable to sow their corn during 
summer, and the war left them no leisure for hunting. They 
were driven to live on roots and every kind of garbage. 
Many fell sick and died. In November the English heard 
that the Narragansetts had received some of Philip's men as 
friends. They at once determined to prevent the union of 
the two tribes, and marched into the Narragansett country 
with a thousand men. They reached the chief village un- 
checked, and attacked it. The Indians opened so fierce a 
f.re, that for a while the assailants were kept at bay. At 
last they stormed the fort, and the Indians fled, leaving their 
stores, their women and children, and many old, sick, and 
wounded. The English then set fire to the village, and 
of those who had been left behind some three hundred 
perished in the flames. The settlers lost about one hundred 
and seventy men, many of whom died from their wounds 
and the severity of the weather. Of the Indians more than 
a thousand fell, of whom seven hundred were fighting men. 
During the next summer Philip and his men again attacked 
the English settlements ; but, though they did much damage, 
they were too much weakened to have any chance of lasting 
success. Philip's forces were destroyed ; he was driven 
from place to place, and at last, in August, he was shot by a 
deserter from his own side. Before the winter the whole of his 
tribe, save a few who escaped to the west, were either slain 
or captured. Among the prisoners was Philip's son, a child 
of three years old. Some of the settlers wished to put him 
to death, but the more humane party prevailed, and he was 
sent, with many of his fellow-prisoners, as a slave to the 
Bermudas. The settlers had lost six hundred men ; whole 
towns were destroyed, and about six hundred houses burnt 
to the ground. 



FROM THE RESTORATION TO i6SS. [chap. 



7. War with the Tarrateens.— In 1676 another Indian 
war broke out on the Piscataqua. The chief tribe in that 
quarter were the Tarrateens. Among their chiefs was one 
Squanto, who, by claiming magical powers, had gained 
gveat influence over his countrymen. One day, as his wife 
was travelling down the river with her infant child, she met 
some English sailors, who wantonly upset her canoe. The 
woman and child escaped, but the child soon afterwards 
died from the mishap. The savages, urged on by Squanto, 
and encouraged by the example of Philip, fell upon the 
settlers. For three years the war raged, and many lives 
were lost on both sides. In 1676 a large number of the 
Indians made peace with the settlers, but this was soon 
broken through the treachery of one of the English, Major 
Waldron. He suspected that the Indians were plotting to 
break the peace, and he resolved to be beforehand with thc^m. 
With this aim he invited four hundred of them to a sham fight. 
The Indians, by agreement, fired oft" their guns first. Before 
they could reload, the English surrounded them, and took 
them prisoners. Two hundred were sent to Boston ; some of 
those who had slain Englishmen were put to death, and the 
rest sold as slaves. The Indians never forgot this treachery, 
and some thirteen years later, during another war, Waldron 
was captured by the treachery of an Indian who pretended to 
be his friend, and cruelly tortured to death. The capture of 
these Indians probably did the English more harm than good, 
since it taught their enemies that there was no safety in sub- 
mission, and that their only chance was to fight it out. So 
hard pressed were the English that in 1678 they were glad 
to make peace. They agreed to pay the Indians a bushel of 
corn for every English household, on condition that they 
might inhabit their former settlements in peace. This was 
the first treaty ever made with the Indians on terms disad- 
vantageous to the Englib.h. One important event occurred 



viii.] HAMPSHIRE AND MAINE SEPAKATED. 119 

dining this war. I have ah'eady spoken of the confederacy 
of the Five Nations, called by the English the Mohawks and 
by the French the Iroquois. They numbered some three 
thousand warriors, and their lands reached from ihe frontier 
of New Netherlands to the Canadian lakes. But, beyond 
those bounds, they exercised a supremacy over many tribes 
who did not belong to the confederacy, but who paid them 
tribute and obeyed their commands. Happily for the 
English, the Mohawks were unfriendly to the New England 
Indians. They were also hostile to the French, and they 
may have known something of tl\e enmity between the 
French and the English, and so have been inclined to favour 
the latter. In 1677 two ambassadors were sent from the 
settlers on the Piscataqua to the Mohawks. They were well 
received, and the Mohawlcs promised to attack the Tarra- 
teens. No great result seems to have come of this at the 
time, but it was the beginning of a long and useful alliance. 
The conduct of the settlei^s during these wars increased the 
displeasure of the home Government. It was thought that 
they might have made shorter work of their enemies if they 
had been willing to ask help from England, but that their 
pride and independence had withheld them. 

8. New Hampshire and Maine made Separate Colonies. — 
In 1676 Massachusetts became engaged in a dispute about 
boundaries. In 1629 John Mason had obtained from the 
Plymciith Company a grant of all the land between the 
rivers Merrimac and Piscataqua. But the grant made two 
years before to the Massachusetts Company had for its 
northern boundary a line three miles north of the Merrimac. 
The Massachusetts Government had always contended that 
this boundary was a straight line drawn from three miles 
beyond the northernmost part of the Merrimac to the sea. 
This would have given them all the settlements on the Pis- 
cataqua. Mason's heirs, on the other hand, contended that 



FROM THE RESTORATION TO i6SS. [chap. 



the boundary was to be a line three miles north of the 
Merrimac all along its course. For some years Mason, the 
grandson of the first proprietor, had been endeavouring to 
revive this claim. At the same time the heirs of Gorges 
were attempting to recover Maine. As neither of those 
claimants seemed likely to succeed, they proposed to sell 
their rights to the Crown. The King at first entertained this 
proposal, intending to make a province for his natural son, 
the Duke of Monmouth. Monmouth however found that 
no great profit was likely to accrue from this, and the scheme 
was abandoned. In 1675 Mason again revived his claim. 
One Randolph was sent out by the Council for Plantations 
to inquire into the matter. He was a kinsman of Mason, a 
man of great ability, and a bitter enemy to New England. 
From the time that he went out, he devoted his whole energy 
to raking up every charge that he could find against the 
settlers, and putting all their conduct in the worst light pos- 
sible, so as to tg^ on the English Government against them. 
He sent back a report that there were many settlers in the 
disputed territory who wished to separate from Massa- 
chusetts. The case was brought before the English Chief 
Justice, who ruled that the land was not included in the 
Massachusetts grant. Accordingly the King placed the four 
towns on the Piscataqua under a separate government, and 
called the districts so formed New Hampshire. It was to 
be governed by a President and Council nominated by the 
King, and a House of Deputies, from the different towns. 
The first Governor appointed under "the new system was 
John Cutts, a leading man in the colony, and esteemed by 
the inhabitants. After a year he was superseded by Edward 
Cranfield, who had bought Mason's right to the land. He 
soon embroiled himself with the inhabitants by various mis- 
deeds. Amongst other things, he was accused of levying 
taxes without the consent of the Assembly, of having suits 



VIII.] MASSACHUSETTS CHARTER AXNULLED. 121 

in which he was interested tried by courts that he had him- 
self appointed, of raising the fees in the law courts so as to 
prevent poor men from suing, and of committing men to 
prison without trial. The people complained of these wropgs 
to the English Government, and Cranfield saved himself 
from being turned out of his government by resigning it. 
The claims of Gorges' heirs were more easily settled. Mas- 
sachusetts bought their rights in the land for 1,200/., and 
stepped into the place of the proprietor. Accordingly the Gov- 
ernment of Massachusetts also governed Maine, but as a sepa- 
rate province, not forming any part of Massachusetts, and 
governed according to the charter originally granted to Gorges. 
9. The Massachusetts Charter Annulled. — In 1679 the 
English Government at last found leisure to turn its attention 
to Massachusetts. In July the King sent out a letter, 
repeating some of the demands made by him before, and in 
addition desiring that the colonists should surrender the 
province of Maine on repayment of the 1,200/., on the ground 
that they had dealt harshly with some of the settlers there. 
The Court of Massachusetts took no notice of this demand. 
To all the others they replied that they either had been, or 
should be, fulfilled. In 1681 the long-expected blow came. 
A general attack was made by the King and his advisers on 
the charters of corporations throughout England. In some 
cases the privileges granted to city corporations had been 
used by the members as a means for setting at naught the 
laws. Such charters might with justice have been forfeited. 
But this was made a pretext for extending the attack to 
others, against which no such charges could be brought. 
The Judges of that day were so subservient to the Crown 
that it was useless for the corporations to resist. A charter 
which had been so wrested from its original purpose as that . 
of Massachusetts was not likely to be overlooked. The 
King demanded that agents should be sent from Massa- 



122 FROM THE RESTORATION TO iCS8. [chap. 

chusetts to explain the charges brought against tlie colony 
of neglecting to enforce the Navigation Act and of coining 
money by their own authority. At the same time the settlers 
were privately informed that their charter would be attacked. 
They sent over two agents, who wrote back word that the 
charter was sure to be taken from them, and asked whether 
they should surrender it of their own accord. The Court 
decided to let matters take their course. About this time 
Cranfield maliciously persuaded the Court of Massachusetts 
to instruct their agents to present 2,000/. to the King as 
the price of keeping the charter. This proposal gained them 
nothing but mockery, as Cranfield wished. In October 1683 
the agents came back, and soon after the charter was declared 
null and void. The constitution under which IMassachusetts 
had existed from its foundation was at an end. 

10. New England under James II. — Before the new 
government could be settled, Charles II. died. During the 
first year of James's reiga no material change was made. In 
1686 the King appointed a Council, with Joseph Dudley as 
its president, to govern Massachusetts, Maine, and New 
Hampshire. Dudley was the son of one of the sternest of the 
old Massachusetts Puritans. But he had utterly forsaken 
his father's ways, and cared more for the favour of the 
English Court than for the rights of his fellow-citizens. In 
j686 the charter of Connecticut was also annulled. Rhode 
Island in January, 1687, yielded up hers. The policy of James 
was to unite all the northern colonies under one government. 
Accordingly, in 1686 Sir Edmund Andros was sent out with 
a commission as Governor of Massachusetts, Plymouth, New 
Plampshire and Maine. At the same time he had instruc- 
tions from the King to join Connecticut to Massachusetts. 
The commission empowered Andros and his Council to levy 
taxes, to make laws, and to administer justice in civil and 
criminal cases. These laws were to be approved of by the 



viii] NEW ENGLAND UNDER JAMES II. 123 

King, and the legal proceedings were to follow the English 
forms. Not a word was said of representatives, or of any 
political rights to be granted to the people. Eleven years 
before Andros had had unfriendly dealings with New 
England. Being then Governor of New York, he had, by 
orders of the Duke of York, the proprietor of that colony, 
marched with a force to Saybrook, to demand that Connec- 
ticut should give up to him several strong places, as being in 
his dominions. The settlers prepared to resist by force, if 
needful, and after a fruitless interview with them Andros 
departed. The dispute was referred to commissioners 
appointed by the King, and was decided in favour of Con- 
necticut. In October 1687 Andros marched into Connec- 
ticut, and demanded the charter. One of the leading settlers, 
Captain Wadsworth, it is said, hid it away ; at all events, the 
Court did not give up the actual document. But this of 
course availed them nothing, and Andros declared the 
colony joined to Massachusetts. In 1688, to complete the 
King's scheme of making one State of all the northern 
colonies, Andros was made Governor of New York. Thus 
he was ruler of all the English settlements north of Delawfire 
Bay, and was responsible to none but the King. During his 
governorship he was accused of many arbitrary proceedings. 
It was said that he would not allow persons to marry until they 
had given surety to him, to be forfeited if there should prove 
to be any impediment, and that he threatened not to suffer 
the people to worship in their own fashion. Even private 
property was not safe. Grants of land made by the former 
Government were declared invalid. When the people com- 
plained, Andros and his followers mockingly told them that 
" the calf had died in the cow's belly," meaning that the de- 
struction of the charter had overthrown all lesser rights that 
were connected with it. In this winter a campaign was 
made against the Indians, but nothing was done, owing 



124 FROM THE RESTORATION TO i6S8. [chap. 

cither to the incapacity of Andres or to the slackness of 
men serving under a commander whom they disliked. 

II. The Revolution in New England. — Whether the New 
England colonists would have long end-.-red the misgovern- 
ment of Andros may be doubted. At all events, when the 
news of the Revolution of 1688 reached them, they were quite 
ready for an outbreak. Seldom has a revolution been so easy 
and so bloodless. The people rose with one accord, seized 
Andros, and turned out his officials. The other New England 
colonies did likewise. All the old Colonial Governments 
were restored, but only to hold their power till the English 
Government made some definite arrangement. This was not 
done for four years, and during that time the old constitutions 
were in force. In 1691 the case of Massachusetts came before 
the English Government. The agents for the colony soon 
saw that it was hopeless to think of recovering their old 
charter, and only applied themselves to getting as favour- 
able an one as they could in its place. The English Govern- 
ment proposed to unite Plymouth to Massachusetts. The 
Plymouth agent at first resisted this, but he soon found that 
there was no chance of Plymouth being allowed to remain 
under a separate government, and that, if not joined to 
Massachusetts, it would be to New York. As his countrymen 
would have liked this still less, he yielded. In 1692 the new 
charter was sent out. The one great change which it made 
was, that the Crown ap|:ointed the Governor, while before 
the people had elected him. The General Court was to consist 
of twenty-eight councillors and an Assembly of representa- 
tives. The councillors were to be elected every year by the 
General Court ; the representatives by the inhabitants of the 
various towns. No religious qualification was required from 
electors as formerly, but all who had freeholds worth forty 
shillings a year, or other estate of forty poui.ds value, were 
admitted to vote. All laws made by the Court were to be 



VI 11.] THE RE I -OL UTIOX IX NE IV EXGLAND. 125 

sent home to England for approval. This, and the change in 
the inanner of appointing the Governor, quite deprived 
Massachusetts of that independence which she had always 
hitherto claimed. In his appointment of a Governor the 
King showed his wish to conciliate the people. He sent 
out Sir William Phipps, a na'ive of Massachusetts, of low 
birth, who v/hen a lad fed sheep, and afterwards became 
a ship's carpenter. In that trade he heard of a Spanish 
ship which had sunk with treasure on board. Having raised 
the vessel, he brought a great sum of money to England, 
and was knighted by the King. James II. made him sheriff 
of New England, but, unlike most of James's officeis 
there, he did his best to serve his country, and won the 
esteem of the New Englanders. He was a man of no 
great ability, but honest, benevolent, and popular. The 
inhabitants of Massachusetts and New Hampshire would 
have gladly seen the two states again joined. But though 
the King had joined Plymouth against its wish to Massa- 
chusetts, he chose to keep ISIassachusetts and New Hamp- 
shire separate. This was ascribed to the influence of Sam'I 
Allen, who had bought the proprietorship of the soil in New 
Hampshire, and now obtained the governorship. New Hamp- 
shire had never had a chaiter, and none was granted to it 
now ; but the government went on as before. The New 
England colonies which fared best at the Revolution were 
Connecticut and Rhode Island. Their charters were restored, 
so that they retained their old constitutions, and alone of all 
the colonies chose their own Governors. In 1690 and the 
two following years New England was engaged in a war 
with the French settlers in Canada and their Indian allies. 
But this was only part of a struggle between the French and 
English settlers which lasted, with one break, for more than 
twenty years, and it will therefore be better to tell of it in 
another chapter. 



126 NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap. 
CHAPTER IX. 

NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION. 

New England under William and Mary (i) — executions for 
witchcraft (2) — the French in Canada (3) — war betzveen the 
French and English settlers (4) — peace tvith the Indians (5) — 
the Nriv England charters in danger (6) — disputes in Mas- 
sachusetts between the goverttor and the assembly (7) — Belcher^ s 
dismissal (8) — IVar wiih Canada [<))—the smaller A'cW England 
colonies (lo). 

I. New England under William and Mary. — The charter 
just mentioned left some important points unsettled. It did 
not definitely decide whether the Acts of the English Parlia- 
ment were to be in all cases binding on the colony, nor did 
it say whether the English Parliament had any power of 
taxing the colonists. The Court of Massachusetts tried to 
decide this latter point in their own favour. In 1692 they 
passed an Act declaring that no tax should be levied in the 
colony without the consent of the Court. To this law the 
English Government refused its assent. If it had passed, it 
would have saved many quarrels between the colonists and 
their Governors, in which the latter were always worsted, and 
it might have even prevented the separation of the colonies 
eighty-four years later. Connecticut scon found itself in 
opposition to the English Government. Colonel Fletcher, 
the Governor of New York, had a commission from the 
Crown giving him the command of the Connecticut militia. 
He did not wish to use this himself, but merely to assert his 
right, and then to transfer the commission to the Governor 
of Connecticut. The Court of Connecticut objected to this, 
and contended that such a commission was contrary to their 



\Y..\NEWEh'GLAND UNDER WILLIAM AND MARY. 127 

charter. Fletcher entered the country to enforce his com- 
mission. Captain Wadsworth, the same man who was said 
to have hidden the charter, was in command of the militia. 
When Fletcher ordered his commission to be read, Wads- 
worth commanded the drums to beat, so that no one 
could hear the commission. Fletcher ordered them to stop, 
Avhereupon Wadsworth threatened him with violence. A 
mob soon assembled, and Fletcher thought it prudent to re- 
treat. It seems strange that he should have suffered himself 
to be so easily baffled, yet he does not appear to have made 
any further attempt to enforce his orders. But though he did 
not succeed in appointing an officer in Connecticut, he still 
had the right of giving orders as commander-in-chief ; and the 
people of Connecticut declared that he revenged himself by 
issuing troublesome and harassing orders. New Hampshire 
soon afterwards showed a like spirit of independence. Allen, 
the new Governor, got into a dispute with several persons, 
who had settled on the lands that he claimed. The New 
Hampshire Court decided against him. He then appealed 
to the King. The Colonial Government refused to admit 
this appeal, but their refusal was overruled by the King. In 
1697 Lord Bellamont was appointed Governor of New York, 
Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. He was sensible, con- 
ciliatory, and popular ; but, vmhappily, he died in 1700, little 
more than a year after his arrival. During his governorship 
the Board of Trade, to which the management of colonial 
affairs had been handed over, sent out a letter warning him 
against the desire of the colonists for independence, and espe- 
cially dwelling on their misconduct in not allowing appeals to 
the King. Bellamont was succeeded as Governor of Massa- 
chusetts and New Hampshire by Dudley, who had been Gov- 
ernor under James II., and as Governor of New York and 
New Jersey by Lord Cornbury. Dudley claimed the right of 
annulling the election of a councillor. Nevertheless the coun- 



iz'i NEIV ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap. 

cillor kept his seat. In 1 705 Dudley laid before the Assembly- 
two points, on which he had special instructions from the 
English Government. These were — I, The establishment of 
two forts, one on the Piscataqua, the other at Pemaquid, a 
spot on the coast near Acadia ; 2, The allotment by the 
Court of a fixed salary to the Governor, Lieutenant-Governor, 
and Judges. The Assembly refused to entertain either of 
these proposals ; the former, because the forts would be 
useless to the colony ; the latter, because the means of the 
colonists varied from time to time, and because it was the 
right of English subjects to raise by their own votes such 
sums of money as might be wanted. Dudley gave way on 
both points. He seems to have been a time-serving man, 
but not without regard for his fellow-countrymen, and with 
nothing of the tyrant in his nature, and so to have lacked 
both the wish and the power to constrain the settlers. More- 
over, he was suspected of various acts of dishonesty, and 
so perhaps felt himself in the power of the Assembly. 

2. Executions for Witchcraft.- Before going further it 
will be well to speak of some important matters which 
happened during the governorship of Dudley and his two 
predecessors. The New Englandersji^like most people in 
those days, believed in witchcraft, and more than one person 
in the colony had been accused of it and put to death. The 
most noted case was that of an old woman, a Mrs. Hibbins, 
whose brother and husband had held high offices in Massa- 
chusetts, and who was hanged as a witch in 1656. In 1692 
a panic seized the colony. Some children persuaded them- 
selves that they were bewitched. The matter was taken up 
by one Cotton Mather, a minister. His father. Increase 
Mather, also a minister, was one of the ablest and boldest of 
those who had opposed Charles II. and James II. in their 
dealings with Massachusetts. The son, Cotton, was a vain 
pushing man, with some learning, but no wisdom. En- 



IX.] THE FRENCH IN CANADA. 129 

couraged by him and another influential minister, Parris, the 
children accused upwards of seventy people, many of them of 
high station and unblemished character. The whole colony 
was carried away by the panic, and twenty people were put to 
death on utterly trumpery evidence. This madness, for such it 
seemed, went away as suddenly as it came. In 1693, when fifty 
people were brought up for trial, all but three were acquitted, 
and these three were pardoned by the Governor. Some of 
the children afterwards confessed that they had done wrong, 
but neither Mather nor Parris ever showed any sign of re- 
pentance. This affair seeins to have done something to 
•weaken the influence of the ministers in Massachusetts, and 
for the future we hear much less of them in public affairs. 

3. The French in Canada. — The accession of William 
III. at once engaged the New England colonists in war 
with the French settlers in Canada. They had for a long 
while been growing into dangerous neighbours. At this time 
their regular settlements were confined to the peninsula of 
Acadia, the island of Cape Breton, and the north side of the 
river St. Lawrence, as far as Montreal. All the land between 
the northern frontier of New England and the St. Lawrence, 
now called Maine and. New Brunswick, seems to have been 
then uninhabited. Thus between the English and French 
settlements was a belt of wild forest, about two hundred 
miles broad, inhabited only by savages. The whole population 
of the French settlements at this time was less than twelve 
thousand, while that of New' England and New York to- 
gether was about one hundred thousand. The chief resource 
of the French settlers was the fur trade with the Indians. 
That which really might have been the most valuable part of 
their possession, Acadia, was utterly neglected, and only 
contained some five hundred settlers. Although it lay 
conveniently for the Newfoundland fisheries, and also for 
an attack on New England, it was bandied backwards and 

K 



I30 NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap. 

forwards between England and France. In 1654 Crom- 
well took it from the French ; Charles II. restored it by the 
treaty of Breda in 1667, and, as we shall see, it changed 
hands three times in the next eighty years. From 1627 to 
1663, Canada was under the control of a French company. 
Under this system the settlers fared so ill, and were so hard 
pressed by the Indians, that they would at one time have 
abandoned the country but for the energy of the Jesuit 
missionaries. In 1663, the company became so disheart- 
ened, that they surrendered the colony to the King. He 
handed it over to the French West India Company, 
and. on its dissolution, sent out, in 16,65, a Governor, 
the Marquis of Tracy, who by his energy and courage 
drove back the hostile Indians, and saved the colony from 
destruction. From that time things seem to have gone on 
somewhat better. The settlements gradually extended west- 
ward up the St. Lawrence, and in 1671 a pillar bearing a 
cross and the French arms was set up at the Falls of St. 
Mary, between Lake Superior and Lake Huron. Unlike the 
New England settlers, who stood aloof from the Indians and 
lived together in compact settlements, the French established 
small outposts in the Indian country, which were at once forts, 
trading-houses, and mission stations. The Jesuit missionaries 
were generally in charge of those stations, and braved every 
danger and underwent all hardships in the hope of converting 
the Indians. At the same time they seem to have done 
little towards controlling thefr converts, and even to have 
encouraged them in their raids on the English and on their 
Indian enemies. The French settlers, living in this way in 
scattered groups among the I ndians, learned to suit themselves 
to their ways, and married among them ; and thus acquired far 
more influence over them than the English ever did. It is even 
said that Count Frontenac, a French nobleman, the Gover- 
nor of Canada just before the invasion of New England, went 



IX.] WAR BETWEEN FRENCH AND ENGLISH. 131 

among the Indians and joined in their war-dance, like one 
of 'their own chiefs. Luckily for the English, the French 
settlers were somewhat unfortunate in their choice of Indian 
allies. The natives whom they first met with were the Hurons 
and the Abenaquis. Both these tribes seem to have been 
enemies to the Mohawks, who were much the stronger race. 
Thus from the outset the French were on bad terms with 
the most powerful of all the Indian tribes. 

4. War between the French and English Settlers. — 
Though there was no open hostility between the French and 
English settlers before 1688, there were disputes about boun- 
daries. For, though their settlements were separated by a 
tract of wilderness, each nation asserted its right to lands 
beyond those which it actually occupied, and the French, as 
they spread towards the west, were accused of encroaching 
on the territory of New York. Each nation too suspected 
the other of underhand designs. One Castine, a French 
baron, had an outlying station at the mouth of the Penobscot. 
Here he lived like a savage chief, with several Indian wives. 
He, it was thought, had supplied Phihp with arms and ammu- 
nition during his war with New England. The French made 
like complaints against the inhabitants of New York. In 1687 
a treaty was signed between France and England whereby it 
was agreed that the colonists of the two nations should keep 
the peace towards each other, and that neither should assist 
the Indians in their attacks on the other. This treaty was not 
likely to have much effect, as it was impossible for either side 
to restrain their Indian allies, and their misconduct might at 
any time give a pretext for war. In the same year the Gover- 
nor of Canada treacherously seized a number of Mohawk chiefs 
at a conference, and shipped them to France for galley slaves. 
The Mohawks retaliated by invading Canada. They were 
assisted, it is said, in this invasion by Dongan, the Governor 
of New York. In revenge for this the French Government 

K 2 



\12 NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap 

in 1689 sent out an expedition against New York. Frontenac, 
who was now appointed Governor of Canada, was in command 
of this. He made preparations for a great attack by land 
and sea. The fleet however was hindered by storms, and 
Frontenac reached Canada too late in the season to do any- 
thing by land. He found his colony suffering from an attack 
of the Mohawks, the fiercest they had yet made. Although 
the French were unable to carry out their scheme against 
Canada this year, their allies made raids into New Hampshire 
and Massachusetts, and did great harm to the settlers. In 
this year (1689) war was declared between France and Eng- 
land. Accordingly in 1690 Frontenac made ready for a great 
invasion of the English territory. In February he sent out 
three parties of Indians to attack the English settlements at 
three different points. One attacked New York, another 
New Hampshire, the third Casco, a settlement on the 
coast of Maine. The English did not believe that it was 
possible for their enemies to make their way through the 
forests in winter, and so were utterly unprepared. All three 
expeditions were successful, that against New York most so. 
The Indians fell on Schenectady, a frontier town of some 
importance, utterly destroyed it, and killed and captured 
about a hundred of the inhabitants. In their distress, the 
English colonists, at the suggestion of the Massachusetts 
Government, held a congress of the Northern colonies. New 
York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut sent each two com- 
missioners, who met at the city of New York. Maryland and 
Rhode Island did not send commissioners, but promised to 
assist in an expedition. It was determined to invade Canada. 
Nine hundred men, of whom four hundred came from New 
York, were sent out under Winthrop, son of the former 
Governor of Connecticut, to attack Montreal by land, while 
a fleet, with about eighteen hundred men on board, sailed 
against Quebec. Unluckily the Mohawks, on whose help 



IX.] WAR BETWEEN FRENCH AND ENGLISH. 133 

the_ English had reckoned, refused to join them in any num- 
bers. Thus the land force was unable to carry out its plan. 
The fleet fared no better. It was beaten off, partly by the 
batteries of Quebec, partly by bad weather, and the whole 
expedition was a failure. Its only effect was to make bad 
blood between the different English settlements. Leisler, 
the Governor of New Yorkj a rash, hot-headed, man, was so 
enraged that he arrested Winthrop and other leading men 
from Connecticut, and would have tried them at New York 
by court-martial but for the remonstrance of the Connecti- 
cut Government. As some set-off against this, a small 
English fleet under Sir William Phipps conquered Acadia, 
It was however retaken the next year. For the next five 
years the war consisted mainly of raids on the frontiers, in 
which the French Indians inflicted great suffering on the 
English, and the Mohawks on the French. During this period 
the English made a change in their mode of defence. Hitherto 
they had relied chiefly on regular forts along the frontier. 
But they found that in the woods these were of little use, 
as the savages, who knew the country, had no difficulty in 
making their way between them. Accordingly they established 
instead small parties along the frontier, which moved from 
point to point and did far more service. In 1696 the French 
made great preparations for a general attack on New England 
by sea and land. But they found it impossible to victual their 
fleet for so long a voyage, and had to content themselves with 
conquering Newfoundland. In the next year the French 
Indians penetrated farther into the English territory than 
they had yet done and attacked Andover, a village only twenty- 
five miles from Boston. In the year, 1697 the peace of Rys- 
wick put an end to the war. By this peace no definite settle- 
ment was made as to the boundaries between the French and 
English settlements. For five years, between this peace and 
the declaration of war in the reign of Queen Anne, the colonies 



134 NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap. 

were at peace. During this time the French sought to 
estabhsh an alHance with the Mohawks. In 1701 a treaty 
was made at Montreal by the French and three of the chief 
Canadian tribes, the Hurons, the Abenaquis and the Ottawas, 
with the five Mohawk nations. The French however were too 
poor, and had too little trade, for their friendship to be 
much valued by the Mohawks. Moreover, the French could 
not make their own allies keep th i treaty. Thus the Mohawks, 
except a few outlying villages, returned to their alliance with 
the English. At the same time they were much less zealous 
and serviceable allies than the French Indians. The latter 
really valued their French allies and fought for them zealously, 
while the Mohawks only cared for the English as a useful check 
upon the French. Their policy was to have as little as possible 
to do with either nation, and to befriend those who were least 
likely to interfere with them, or to trespass on their country. 
Indeed the English had so little faith in the Mohawks that, a 
few years later, when an English force in Canada suffered greatly 
from sickness, they believed that their Indian allies had poi- 
soned the wells. In 1702 war again broke out. By land the 
operations were much what they had been in the previous war. 
Parties of savages from either side macie raids across the 
frontier, destroying villages and carrying off prisoners. The 
brunt of this war fell especially on New Hampshire and 
Massachusetts ; while New York, whose frontiers v.'ere covered 
by the Mohawk country, for the most part escaped. The 
English during this war made three attempts to recover 
Acadia, In 1704 a force of five hundred and fifty men was 
sent out in a fleet of whale-boats for this purpose, but did 
absolutely nothing. Three years later the attempt was re- 
newed, and again failed. In both of these expeditions there 
seems to have been a general and well-founded feeling of 
dissatisfaction with the leaders. Indeed, it is said, that, after 
the second, the chief officers would have been tried by court- 



IX.] WAR BETWEEN FRENCH AND ENGLISH. 135 

martial, but that so many were accused that there were not 
enough left to sit in judgment. It was thought too that 
many of the New Englanders secretly favoured the Acadians 
for the sake of trading with them. Dudley himself was sus- 
pected of this, and in 1706 six leading men were prosecuted 
on this charge before the Court of Massachusetts and fined 
various sums, from 1,100/. to 60/. Their sentence however 
was annulled by the Crown. In 17 10 a more successful 
attempt was made. A force of more than three thousand 
men attacked Port Royal, the chief fort in Acadia. Subercas, 
the French commander, had only three hundred men. More- 
over, he felt ill-used at the feeble support given him by the 
French Government, and had no heart for a stout resistance, 
and so yielded. The English, in honour of the Queen, 
changed the name of the place to Annapolis. In the next 
year a great expedition was planned against Canada. A fleet 
of fifteen men-of-war was sent from England with five thou- 
sand soldiers. These were to be joined by two regiments of 
New England militia, making the whole force up to nearly 
seven thousand. This army was considered fully strong 
enough to take Quebec. In June the Massachusetts Govern- 
ment received orders to provide pilots and a supply of pro- 
visions for the fleet. Sixteen days later the fleet itself arrived. 
Considerable delay and difficulty occurred in finding supplies. 
The blame of this was laid by the English commander on 
the sloth, stinginess, and disloyalty of the New Englanders, 
while they, on the other hand, declared that they had done 
all they could, but that unfairly short notice had been given 
them. This probably was true. It is even said that the 
people of Boston were so far from being backward in the 
matter that many families lived wholly on salt food in order 
that the troops might be properly supplied. Nevertheless, 
the complaints found their way to England and did as much 
harm as if they had been true. The expedition itself was an 



136 NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap. 

utter failure. The fleet ran on the rocks near the mouth of the 
St. Lawrence, and eight or nine ships and more than a thou- 
sand men were lost. The commanders, disheartened by this, 
and despairing of getting up the river, returned home. The 
blame of the failure was laid by some on the admiral, Sir 
Hoveden Walker, by others on the Boston pilots. After its 
return the admiral's ship blew up at Spithead, and his papers, 
which might have helped to clear up the affair, were lost. 
One advantage had ensued from this expedition. It had 
withheld the French from an attempt to recover Annapolis, 
and as the English garrison there was weak, such an attempt 
would probably have succeeded. In 1713 peace was signed 
at Utrecht. This peace gave Acadia to England, but it did 
not determine what the north-east boundary of Acadia should 
be ; consequently the unoccupied country between the Kenne- 
bec and the St. Lawrence was still left to be a future source of 
dispute. In one way this war did a great deal to bring the 
colonies into discredit with the mother country. The frontier 
warfare, in which the colonists showed great courage and 
defended their country successfully, was scarcely heard of by 
the English. It was not marked by any briUiant exploits, and 
thus little or nothing was known of it in England. But the 
regular attacks on the French coast all came under the 
notice of the English Government, and the colonists were 
blamed, not only for their own shortcomings, but for the 
failures of the English commanders. Thus they got an ill 
name in England for slackness and disloyalty, and even 
cowardice, which their general conduct throughout the war 
in no way deserved. 

5. Peace with the Indians.— The peace of Utrecht did 
not end the war with the Indians. The settlers on the frontier 
suffered so much that, about this time, the New Hampshire 
Government offered a reward of ico/, for an Indian prisoner, 
or the scalp of an Indian. One French settlement was 



IX.] PEACE WITH THE INDIANS. 137 



specially obnoxious to the English. This was an outpost 
called Nonidgewock, about three days' march from the 
northern frontier of Massachusetts. This was managed by 
Sebastian Ralle, a Jesuit, one of the bravest and most suc- 
cessful of the French missionaries. He built a chapel there, 
and got together a congregation of sixty Indians, whom he 
regularly trained to take part in the services of the Church. 
He does not however seem to have attempted to restrain 
their ferocity against the English, but rather to have inflamed 
it, and was said to have even abetted their cruelties with his 
own hands. In 1722 a party from New England destroyed 
the settlement, Ralle fled, leaving his goods and papers in 
their hands. In 1724 another attack was made, in which 
•he was killed. In 1725 the Court of Massachusetts proposed 
that commissioners should be sent from the five English 
colonies north of the Hudson to remonstrate with the 
Governor of Canada on his conduct in aiding the Indians. 
New Hampshire alone consented. A deputation was sent to 
Canada, and at the same time the English began to treat 
with the Indians. The French Governor, the Marquis of 
Vaudreuil, said that the Indians merely fought in defence of 
their own lands, and not in obedience to him. The English 
then produced letters found at Norridgewock, which proved 
the contrary. They also brought forward an Indian whom 
the Governor had furnished with arms and ammunition to be 
used against the English. The Governor tried to make 
excuses, but the deputies stood their ground, and their firm- 
ness withheld him from any attempt to break off the negotia- 
tions between the English and the Indians. Finally peace 
was made at Falmouth. The English promised to abolish 
all private trade, and to establish trading-houses under the 
control of the Massachusetts Government, where the Indians 
would be supplied better and more cheaply than by private 
traders. Thus, after more than thirty years of war, the New 



138 NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap. 

England frontier enjoyed a long term of peace. This long 
struggle had a great effect in accustoming the New Eng- 
landers to all the shifts and dangers of war in a savage 
country. Every one on the New England frontiers had to be 
perforce a soldier. It would be endless to tell all the feats of 
daring performed by the settlers. Even the women learned to 
use weapons and face dangers and accomplish exploits, which 
would have shown no little courage, even if done by men. 
One woman, Hannah Dustin, was carried off by the Indians 
with a young lad. In the night, while the Indians slept, the 
prisoners rose, killed and scalped the whole party, save two, 
and made their way back to the English settlement. One 
village was attacked while all the men were away. The 
women dressed themselves in men's coats and hats, lest thS 
weakness of the place should be known, and kept up so hot a 
fire that the Indians retreated. One undoubtedly evil effect was 
produced by these wars. Just as in the case of Philip's war, 
the colonials became so infuriated against the Indians that 
they scarcely distinguished between friend and foe. Thus 
in New Hampshire it was for many years impossible to get any 
jury to convict an Englishman for the murder of an Indian. 

6. The New England Charters in danger.— For some 
years after the Revolution, the New England charters seemed 
to be in danger. In 1701 a bill was brought forward in Parlia- 
ment for withdrawing them. This however fell through. 
Three years later the proposal was renewed. Connecticut, 
having the most liberal charter, was naturally the most 
alarmed. The other colonies seem to have taken the matter 
more quietly, and the Connecticut charter was made the chief 
subject of contest. Dudley, the Governor of Massachusetts, 
and Lord Cornbury, the Governor of New York, were its chief 
opponents. Dudley was a personal enemy to many of the 
chief men in Connecticut, and Lord Cornbury had been 
refused 450/. which he had demanded from Connecticut for 



ix.] DISPUTES IN MASSACHUSETTS. 139 

tbe defence of his own colony. * The Government of Con- 
necticut was accused of harbouring pirates and other 
criminals ; of setting at naught the laws of England and dis- 
obeying the Queen's officers ; of refusing to contribute to the 
defence of New England, and of robbing some Indians of 
their land. Luckily for the colony, Sir Henry Ashurst, its 
agent in England, was a man of great energy. By his repre- 
sentations and those of the coun^) 1 whom he employed, Con- 
necticut was cleared of all the charges brought against it. 
Ten years later the charters were again threatened. They 
were defended by Jeremiah Dummer, a leading citizen of 
Massachusetts, a man of moderate views, who was afterwards 
Lieutenant-Governor. He represented that the loss of the 
charters and the consequent danger of arbitrary* government 
would be a great blow to the welfare of the colonies ; that 
anything which weakened the colonies would also affect the 
West Indies, which obtained many of their supplies thence, 
and so would injure the mother country. He laughed at the 
idea of some who fancied that the colonibts were aiming at 
independence, and said that it would be as reasonable to set 
two of the King's beef- eaters to keep a baby from getting 
out of its cradle and doing mischief as to guard against a 
rebellion in America. His arguments prevailed, and the 
attack on the charters was abandoned. 

7. Disputes in Massachusetts between the Governor 
and the Assembly. — In 171 5, Dudley was succeeded in the 
governorship of Massachusetts by Colonel Shute. During his 
term of office and that of the two next Governors, the history 
of Massachusetts is one long series of contests between the 
Governor and the Assembly. The chief subject of these dis- 
putes was the steadfast refusal of the Assembly to grant the 
Governor a fixed salary. They insisted on voting him such a 
sum as they thought fit from year to year, and so making him 
dependent on them. There were besides smaller subjects of 



I40 NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap 

difiference which helped fo embitter matters. The contest 
about the salary had, as we have seen, begun in the time of 
Dudley. He failed to carry his point. For the first four 
years of Shute's government things went on quietly. In 1720 
he claimed the right of rejecting a Speaker chosen by the 
Assembly. They resisted, but at length so far gave way as 
to elect another Speaker. At the same time they reduced the 
Governor's half-yearly salary from 600/. to 500/. Shute 
passed over this without notice, but, when it was repeated, he 
told them that he had orders from the Crown to obtain a fixed 
salary. The Assembly asked leave to postpone the question, 
and the Governor granted this. The next year the Assembly 
refused to vote any salaries till they knew whether the 
Governor had given his consent to the Acts which they had 
passed. When they had done their business they asked 
leave to rise, but the Governor refused to allow this. They 
then rose without leave. The Council voted this an irregular 
proceeding. When they next met, they got into a high dis- 
pute. The small-pox broke out at Boston, and it was unsafe 
for the Assembly to meet there. Accordingly they decided 
to meet elsewhere. The Governor considered this an en- 
croachment on his rights. He did not wish to force them to sit 
in Boston, but he objected to the matter being taken out of his 
hands. Soon after this he produced letters from the English 
Government, approving of his conduct about the election of a 
Speaker. The Assembly still asserted its right, and there the 
matter rested. In 1728, Shute was succeeded by William 
Burnet, whose father, Gilbert Burnet, Bishop of Salisbury, had 
been a well-known writer and a leading supporter of William 1 1 1. 
The new Governor was received with great pomp and every 
expression of good-will. Nevertheless, the representatives 
were as firm as before in the matter of the salary. To show 
that this was not done out of any personal ill-will to Burnet, 
they voted him a grant of 1,700/. This he refused, and 



IX.] DISPUTES IN MASSACHUSETTS. 141 

insisted on a fixed salary. The Council tried to take a middle 
course, and proposed that a fixed salary should be granted 
but for a limited time. The Assembly however refused even 
this concession. In their own defence they drew up a paper 
setting forth their reasons. The principal of these were, that 
it was " the undoubted right of all Englishmen by Magna 
Charta to raise and dispose of money for the public service 
of their own free accord without compulsion," and that it 
might " be deemed a betraying of the rights and privileges 
granted in the charter." Burnet answered that to admit the 
claims of the Assembly would throw the whole government 
into their hands. Moreover he said that it had never been 
considered unsafe in England to give the King an income for 
life. To this the Assembly answered that there was a great 
difference between the King, who had a permanent interest 
in the welfare of his subjects, and a Governor, who only came 
for a time. They pleaded too that it was impossible for them 
to usurp the whole government of the colony so long as the 
Governor and Council had each power to refuse their consent 
to laws. About this time the Assembly of Barbados was 
engaged in a like contest with the Governor there, and their 
example possibly served to encourage the people of Massa- 
chusetts. Things now came to a dead-lock. The Governor 
refused to dissolve the Assembly, and they were obhgedtosit 
on, greatly to their inconvenience, while he would not take any 
money granted, since it did not come in the form of a fixed 
salary. The Assembly now resolved to lay their case before 
the English Government, and sent over two agents. The 
question was then brought before the Privy Council, which 
strongly supported Burnet, and advised that Parliament 
should attend to the matter. This however does not seem 
to have been done, or if it was, nothing came of it. In 1729 
Burnet died. In spite of these disputes, the colonists liked 
and esteemed him, and the Assembly ordered a very honour- 



142 NEW ENGLAND AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap. 

able funeral at the public charge. His successor, Belcher, 
had been one of the two agents sent over by the Assembly to 
plead their cause in England. The English Government 
probably thought that his appointment would conciliate the 
colonists. At first it seemed likely to do so, and he was 
received with great joy. But it soon became clear that the 
old strife was to be renewed. The Assembly, as before, 
refused to vote a fixed salary. It was not easy for Belcher to 
fight successfully for a cause which he had once opposed. 
Moreover, he weakened his own position by his unfair con- 
duct in some appointments to offices. In the next year 
Belcher gave way, and asked the English Government to 
allow him to accept the money granted him by the Assembly. 
Hitherto the Crown had ordered the Governor to get a fixed 
salary or to take nothing. This was now so far relaxed that 
Belcher was allowed to take the grant, although he was 
ordered still to demand the salary. By this concession the 
English Government acknowledged itself defeated, and in 
a few years afterwards it yielded altogether. Thus the 
Assembly carried the point for which they had been strug- 
gling for twenty-six years. Throughout these contests with 
the different Governors, Boston was always the chief strong- 
hold of the colonial party. The influence of that party there- 
fore was somewhat weakened by a law passed in 1694 that 
no man should represent any town in which he did not dwell. 
Thus the outlying towns which might otherwise have chosen 
eminent men from Boston, were obliged to put up with 
inferior men of their own, and only two of the leaders of the 
party at Boston could find seats in the Assembly. But, 
though in one way this weakened the influence of the 
Assembly, it must have made it more attentive to the wants 
of the smaller towns, and kept Boston from gaining an undue 
share of power, which it might otherwise have done. 

8. Belcher's Dismissal. — Belcher's dismissal irom the 



IX.] V/AJi WITH CANADA. 143 

governorship was brought about by means in nowise credit- 
able to his enemies. Letters containing various charges 
against him were sent to England ; some of these were 
anonymous, others were forged in the names of leading men 
in Massachusetts, The charges were at length cleared up, 
but they did Belcher no little harm with the English Govern- 
ment. His final dismissal, if the story of it be true, as it 
probably is, was disgraceful to all concerned. The ministry 
in England were very anxious that a certain member, Lord 
Euston, son of the Duke of Grafton, should be elected for 
Coventry. The dissenters were very strong in that town, 
and one Maltby proposed to the Duke of Grafton to 
secure Lord Euston's return to Parliament on condition 
that Belcher was dismissed. This offer was accepted. The 
agent then told the Coventry dissenters that, if they secured 
Lord Euston's election. Belcher, who was trying to get the 
Church of England established in Massachusetts, and who 
was hostile to the Nonconformists, should be dismissed. 
The agreement was carried out on both sides. 

9. War with Canada. — Under Belcher's successor, Shirley, 
war again broke out with the French in Canada. War was 
not declared between England and France in Europe, but 
English troops were fighting against the French, the former for 
the Queen of Hungary, the latter for the Elector of Bavaria. 
Thus war might at any moment break out between the colonists. 
In 1744 the French Governor of Cape Breton took Canseau, 
and threatened Annapolis, which was only saved by a rein- 
forcement from Massachusetts. Some of the English prisoners 
from Canseau were sent to Louisburg, the chief fort of Cape 
Breton. When they were restored and returned to Massa- 
chusetts they told Shirley of certain weaknesses in the for- 
tification of Louisburg, which would, they thought, lay it 
open to a surprise. The place would be of great value to 
England, as it commanded Acadia, the mouth of the St. 



U^ NEW ENGLAhrn AFTER THE REVOLUTION, [chap. 

Lawrence, and Newfoundland. Shirley therefore made the 
bold proposal to the Assembly of attacking Louisburg in 
the winter, without waiting for help from England. The 
Assembly at first was utterly against it, but the matter got 
abroad and the project became very popular. It was again 
brought before the Assembly, which decided, though only by 
a majority of one vote, to attack the place. Connecticut, New 
Hampshire, and Rhode Island, all joined in the expedition. 
The other colonies declined to assist. A force of about four 
thousand five hundred men was sent out in eight small vessels. 
On their way they were reinforced by four English ships. The 
French were quite unprepared, and allowed the enemy to 
land unopposed. The N ew Englanders had had no experience 
of any regular war since the peace of Utrecht, and were 
quite ignorant of scientific warfare. Thus they suffered 
losses in the siege which might easily have been avoided. 
The siege began in the last week of April. On the i8th 
of May a French ship, well supphed with stores, and with five 
hundred men on board, was taken by the English fleet on its 
way to relieve the garrison, A few days later the fleet was 
strengthened by the arrival of two more ships from England 
On the 17th of June the French, believing that a general 
attack was about to be made, surrendered the place. This 
success was a great triumph for the colonists. A force, 
taken entirely from New England, under officers who had 
never seen service before, had performed a feat of which any 
army might have been proud. Besides capturing Louisburg, 
they probably saved their own country from invasion. A 
French fleet of seven ships was on its way to attack New 
England, when they heard of the capture of Louisburg, and 
gave over the attempt. Next year the French sent a fleet of 
forty sail, among them eleven ships of the line, with three 
thousand soldiers on utoard, to attack the English colonies. 
At this time England was far too much taken up with its own 
troubles and the Jacobite insurrection to do much for the 



ix.l THE SMALLER NEW ENGLAND COLONLES. 145 

help of its colonies. Had it not been for a series of mishaps 
which befell the French fleet, New England could hardly ha /e 
escaped. But the ships met with storms, the chief officerc 
fell sick and died, and the fleet sailed back to France without 
striking a blow. In 1748 the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle put 
an end to the war. To the great disappointment of the New 
Englanders, Louisburg was restored to the French. This 
war had no good effect on the relations between the colonists 
and the mother country. The former felt that their services 
had been held cheap, and that the English Government had 
left them unprotected. Each country, in fact, was too busy 
with its own affairs to pay much attention to the other, or to 
understand its difficulties. Such inconveniences must always 
be when two distant countries are under one Government. 

10. The Smaller New England Colonies. — During all 
this time no important political events took place in Rhode 
Island or Connecticut. This quiet was probably due to their 
being left with the appointment of their own Governor. Thus 
they had no cause for discontent ; and moreover they felt 
that anything like disorder might endanger their charters. 
In New Hampshire for many years there was great con- 
fusion from disputes between Mason's successors and the 
settlers. The juries in the colonial courts uniformly gave 
verdicts against the proprietary. Appeals to the King in 
Council proved ineffectual, and after an attempted compro- 
mise,' the settlers wei'e left in possession. During the time 
that the contest between the Governor and the Assembly 
had been raging in Massachusetts, New Hampshire obtained 
the favour of the English Government by granting the Gov- 
ernor a fixed salary. In 1727 an Act was passed that assem- 
blies should be elected every three years. All voters were 
to have an estate of fifty pounds value. This Act was con- 
firmed by the English Government, and henceforth served 
as a declaration of the -constitution of New Hampshire. 



146 aMAR YLAND. [chap. 

CHAPTER X. 
MARYLAND. 

Grant of land to Lord Baltimore {\)— first settlement {-^ — the con- 
stitution (3) — dissensions (4) — t7vo parties in the colony (5) — • 
the proprietor restored (6) — the colony after the restoration (7). 

I. Grant of Land to Lord Baltimore.— All the colonies 
that we have considered hitherto, with one exception, were 
founded either by companies or by parties of settlers, and 
were under Governors chosen by themselves or appointed by 
the Crown. But, as we have seen in the case of JVIaine, there 
was another kind of colony, called proprietary. The first ot 
these was Maryland, founded in 1632 by Lord Baltimore. 
His father, George Calvert, the f^rst Lord Baltimore, was a 
convert to Romanism and an adherent and personal friend 
of James L and afterwards of Charles L Thus he easily 
obtained a grant of land for a colony. His first attempt was 
in Newfoundland. A settlement had already been formed 
there by some Bristol men in 16 10. No success followed 
Lord Baltimore's attempt. The climate was severe, his 
health failed, and he was annoyed on account of his religion 
by the neighbouring colonists, who seem to have been Puri- 
tans. In 1629 he left Newfoundland and went to Virginia ; 
but the Virginians, who were strong Protestants, gave him an 
unfriendly reception, and he left the colony. He then applied 
for a grant of land to the south of James River, within the 
bounds of Virginia. This however was resisted by some 
leading Virginians, and the scheme was given up. Finally 
he obtained a grant of land north of the River Potomac, 
taking in thus a large portion of the soil included in the 



X.] FIRST SETTLEMENT. 147 



ori'ginal Virginia patent, which had, it will be remembered, 
been annulled. The northern boundary of Baltimore's 
grant was the fortieth degree of latitude, the southern 
boundary of the great New England patent. The western 
boundary was a line drawn due north from the westernmost 
head of the Potomac. The lands covered by this grant had 
not been occupied under the Virginia patent. The country 
was to be called Maryland, in honour of the Queen Henrietta 
Maria. The charter granted to Baltimore made him ahnost 
an independent sovereign. With the assistance of the free- 
men of the colony he could make laws, which were to be as 
far as possible in accordance with the laws of England, but 
did not require to be confirmed by the King. He had also 
power to appoint judges and public officers, and to pardon 
criminals. One very important concession was made ; no 
tax was to be levied by the English Crown. This charter 
merely fixed the relations between the Crown and the pro- 
prietor ; it did not settle anything as to those between the 
proprietor and the settlers, beyond ordering that they should 
be called together to make laws. Everything beyond this 
was left to be arranged between Baltimore and the colo- 
nists. 

2. First Settlement. — Before the charter was finally exe- 
cuted, Baltimore died. The grant however was continued 
to his son and successor, Cecil Calvert. In 1632 he sent 
out about two hundred settlers, under his brother, Leonard 
Calvert. Though Baltimore himself was a Roman Catholic, 
he does not seem to have had any idea of confining his settle- 
ment to that religion, and many of those who sailed were 
Protestants. Early in 1634 the settlers landed at the mouth 
of the Potomac. By good luck they lighted on an Indian 
town, from which a large number of the inhabitants had just 
fled for fear of a neighbouring tribe. Those who remained 
received the settlers hospitably, accepted some presents, and 

L 2 



148 MARYLAND. [chap. 

granted the English the empty part of the town. Unhappily, 
the colonists had other and less friendly neighbours to deal 
with. A Virginian, one Clayborne, had established a station 
at a place called the Isle of Kent, further up the river, for 
tiade with the Indians. The territory came within the 
bounds of Baltimore's grant, and Governor Calvert con- 
sidered that he was not bound to regard such a settlement as 
inhabited land, and consequently that he had a right to 
occupy it. Clayborne resisted his attempt to take possession 
of it, and a fight followed, in which one Marylander and 
three Virginians were killed. The question was referred to 
the Privy Council, but no definite decision was given, and 
the matter was left to become a source of dispute in future 
times. 

3. The Constitution. — The colony soon throve and in- 
creased. During the first two years, Baltimore, it is said, 
spent 40,000/. on the exportation of emigrants and in sup- 
plying the colony with necessaries. Notwithstanding this, 
he had some difficulties with the settlers. The charter, as 
we have seen, did not fix the relations between them ; and 
Baltimore himself does not seem to have drawn up any con- 
stitution for the colony. The nearest approach to this was 
the commission by which he appointed Leonard Calvert 
governor. This gave him power to call assemblies, to con- 
firm or annul the laws passed by them, to make grants of 
land, and to sit as judge in criminal and civil cases. But 
the exact division of power between the Governor and the 
Assembly was not settled, and consequently for some time 
there was great danger of each asserting claims which the 
other would not admit. This evil too was increased by the 
fact of the proprietor being of a different religion from 
many of the settlers. This however was less important 
than it might ha\'e been, inasmuch as Lord Baltimore never 
seems to have made the slightest attempt to press Romanism 



X.] THE CONSTITUTION. 149 



on the colonists, or indeed to have troubled himself in any 
way about their religious condition. As in Massachusetts, 
the Assembly was at first a primary one, and consisted of 
the whole body of freemen. In the same way too the 
inconvenience of the system was soon felt, and a Representa- 
tive Assembly was substituted. The process of change how- 
ever was not exactly the same. In Massachusetts, as we 
have seen, a Representative Assembly grev/ up side by side 
with the original assembly of all the freemen, and finally ousted 
it ; but in Maryland the primary assembly gradually changed 
into a representative one. At first many of the settlers found it 
inconvenient to attend, and sent proxies, that is, gave their 
neighbours power to vote for them. From this it was an 
easy step to allow each county to send two proxies or repre- 
sentatives. But for some time the two systems were mixed 
up, and those who were dissatisfied with the result of the 
election were allowed to attend the Assembly themselves. 
After the representative system was definitely established, 
the proprietor exercised the right of summoning any persons 
he pleased to the Assembly, to sit with the representatives. 
This right, if freely used, would have thrown the whole 
power into the hands of the proprietor, since he could fill the 
Assembly with his nominees. As, however, in about ten or 
twelve years the Assembly was divided, as in Virginia, into 
two Houses — the lower formed of the representatives, and the 
upper of the councillors and the proprietor's nominees — this 
power was of no great importance, nor does it seem to have 
been largely exercised. The want of a fixed constitution was 
soon felt. It was ordered by the charter that the proprietor 
and the freemen should make laws ; but nothing was said as 
to the way in which this power was to be divided, and what 
was to be done in case of a difference of opinion. In a 
long-established government, such as that of England, the 
absence of written regulations on a point of this sort matters 



I50 MARYLAND. [chap. 

but little, as some settled usage is sure to have grown up 
which is fully as binding as any law ; but in a new country 
the want of a fixed regulation could not fail to be felt. This 
soon happened. The Governor acting for the proprietor, 
and the Assembly, each proposed laws, and in each case the 
laws proposed by the one were refused by the other. At last 
it was settled by a compromise, in which the proprietor 
made the chief concessions. These disputes did not inter- 
fere with the good feeling which existed between Baltimore 
and the settlers. This is shown by the fact that the Assembly 
voluntarily granted the proprietor a subsidy, to be raised by 
a poll-tax, to repay him in some degree for all that he had 
spent on the colony. By this act of courtesy and good-will 
to Lord Baltimore, the Assembly also asserted that the right 
of levying taxes belonged to them rather than to the pro- 
prietor. 

4. Dissensions.— We see that there were three subjects 
out of which difficulties might arise ; Clayborne's claim to 
the Isle of Kent, the limits of the power of the Assembly, 
and the difference of religion between the proprietor and the 
settlers. For this was an age in which difference of religion 
was almost sure to lead to active hostility, since there was 
scarcely a single sect which was content to be merely tole- 
rated, but each sought to force others to join it, and none 
more so than the Puritan party, to which many of the 
influential Marylanders belonged. The outbreak of the 
civil war in England was the signal for all these causes of 
quarrel to come into action. Clayborne thought that he was 
likely to get that redress from the Parliament which was 
refused him by the King, and the settlers who opposed 
Baltimore in religion and politics naturally seized the oppor- 
tunity given them by thff success of their friends at home. 
Accordingly, soon after the outbreak of the civil war in 
England, disturbance in Maryland began. In 1645 the 



X.] TM^O PARTIES IM THE COLONY. 151 

Governor was driven from the colony by an insurrection 
excited by Clayborne, with the assistance of one Richard 
Ingle, who, for some evil practices, had been proclaimed 
a traitor to the King. Clayborne took advantage of his 
temporary success to repossess himself by force of the 
Isle of Kent, where his property had been confiscated. 
Great disorders ensued, and those who remained loyal 
to the proprietor were cruelly plundered. But the insur- 
gents did not succeed in overthrowing the established 
government, and Parliament does not appear to have ap- 
proved of their proceedings. When the Parliament got 
the upper hand in England, Baltimore felt that it was 
advisable to conciliate that party. Although a Roman 
Catholic and a friend of the King, he does not seem to have 
been zealous in either cause. His policy throughout was that 
of a man whose chief aim was to keep his proprietorship 
?nd the advantages which it brought him, at the same time 
interfering as little as possible with the wishes of the 
settlers. As early as 1 64 1 a complaint had been made in 
Parliament that Maryland was practically an independent 
State, Hkely to strengthen Romanism and to injure the Pro- 
testant cause. In consequence of this, Baltimore had written 
to the Jesuit priests settled in Maryland, warning them that 
he could not protect them against the laws of England, or 
grant them any special immunity. In the same spirit, at 
the death of his brother in 1648, he appointed as governor 
William Stone, a Protestant, and believed to be well affected 
to the Parliament. At the same time, with a view to pro- 
tecting his fellow-religionists, he compelled Stone to take 
an oath not to molest Romanists, or to keep them out of 
office. 

5. Two Parties in the Colony. — For the next two years 
the relations between the different parties in the colony, and 
between the proprietor and the Assembly, seem to have been 



152 MARYLAND. [chap. 

friendly. An Act was passed granting full toleration to all 
religions. At the same time blasphemy. Sabbath-breaking 
by games and the like, and the use of abusive names for any 
sect, were strictly forbidden. This law may be looked upon 
as a sort of compromise between the two parties. The 
Roman Catholics, who were the weaker body, would ask for 
toleration, but the prohibition of Sunday games is quite 
sure to have come from the Puritans. Another Act was 
passed by which the right of levying taxes was definitely 
granted to the Assembly. About this time the Puritan party 
was reinforced by a number of emigrants from Virginia. It 
is possible that they had found their way in gradually, but in 
1649 they first appear as forming a separate settlement, called 
Providence. In the next year they returned a member to 
the Assembly. But though the Puritan party was thus 
strengthened, the Assembly allowed Baltimore to impose an 
oath of allegiance on all the settlers, a measure which they 
had refused to pass a year before. In the next year the 
commissioners sent out by Parliament to subdue the colonies 
in Chesapeake bay, after they had reduced Virginia, pro-, 
ceeded to Maryland. They demanded that the colonists 
should promise to be faithful to the Commonwealth, and that 
the name of " the keepers of the liberties of England " 
should be substituted for that of " the proprietor" in all legal 
documents. The first condition was readily accepted ; but 
Stone demurred to the second, considermg it an infringe- 
ment of the proprietor's rights. Accordingly he was deposed. 
The commissioners however finding that he was popular 
with the colonists, and not ill-affected to the Parliament, 
came to terms with him by some concession on each side, 
and he was restored as Governor. For the next two yearb 
things went on smoothly. But in 1654 Baltimore sent out 
instructions to Stone to demand an oath of fidelity to the 
proprietor from all the colonists ; all who refused were to be 



X.] THE PKOPRIETOR RESTORED. 153 

banished. This was considered, not unfairly, a violation of 
the terms on which Stone had submitted. The Puritan 
party rose ; the commissioners, Bennett and Clayborne, 
were recalled from Virginia ; and Stone was again deposed. 
Stone resisted ; he raised a small force, and for a while 
seemed in a fair way to be master of the colony. But the 
Puritans also took up arms, and an engagement followed in 
which Stone was defeated, and inany of his followers killed. 
By this victory the colony came for a while under the power 
of the Puritans. 

6. The Proprietor restored. — In the meantime Clayborne 
and his party had seized the opportunity given them by the 
ascendency of Parliament to renew their claims to the land 
included in Baltimore's patent, but which they professed to 
have occupied. The matter was refcrn d to the Commis- 
sioners for Plantations, but their consideration of it was 
repeatedly postponed, and there is no trace to be found of 
any decision having been given. At the same time the 
English Government was engaged in considering the validity 
of Lord Baltimore's proprietary rights. The question was 
referred to a body called the Commissioners for Trade. 
Baltimoi-e had already endeavoured to ingratiate himself 
with the ruling party, by representing that Maryland was the 
only colony, besides those of New England, that had readily 
submitted to the Parliament, and that it would be both 
unfair and unjust to join it to a royalist colony like Virginia. 
While the case was still before the commissioners, Baltimore 
seems to have made an attempt to recover his authority by 
granting a commission as Governor to one Feudal, an un- 
principled and intriguing man. Feudal, however, was at 
once arrested by the Parliamentary leaders, fortunately per- 
haps for Lord Baltimore, since he had not time, by any act 
of violence, to bring the cause of the proprietor into dis- 
credit. In 1656 the Commissioners for Trade reported in 



154 MARYLAND. [chap 

favour of the restoration of the proprietor. This recom- 
mendation required to be adopted by the Government before 
it could take effect. Nevertheless, Baltimore, without wait- 
ing- for this, sent out his brothei% Philip Calvert, with in- 
structions to establish Fendal as Governor. Thus there 
were in the colony two governments, each claiming legiti- 
mate power. In the next year Bennett and Matthews, the 
Parliamentary leaders, finding that Baltimore was sure to be 
restored, came to terms with him. They handed over the 
government to him, on the conditions that all offences com- 
mitted since the disturbances began should be tried, not by 
the proprietor, but by the English Government ; that none 
should forfeit their land for the part they had taken ; and 
that all of the Puritan party who wished to leave the country 
should have a year in which to do so. On these conditions 
Baltimore was restored. Though the English Government 
does not seem to have given any final decision in his favour, 
yet it seems to have accepted the report of the commis- 
sioners, and no attempt was made to interfere with the 
authority of the proprietor. 

7. The Colony after the Restoration. — In 1662 Lord 
Baltimore sent over his son, Charles Calvert, as Governor. 
Under him the colony soon recovered from the effect of 
its late troubles. By 1675 it contained sixteen thousand in- 
habitants. In 1676 Charles Calvert succeeded to his fathers 
title and proprietorship. In 168 1 he passed a law limit- 
ing the right of voting to those who had freeholds of fifty 
acres, or other pioperty of forty pounds value. Perhaps in 
consequence of this, an insurrection broke out, headed by 
Fendal. This was subdued before serious mischief could 
follow. Under James II. the proprietor's charter was 
threatened, and would probably have been taken away but 
for the Revolution. After the Revolution the proprietor, 
being a Roman Catholic, was deprived of all political rights 



X.] THE COLONY AFTER THE RESTORATION. 155 

in the colony, though he was allowed to keep his proprietary 
rights over the soil. His successor turned Protestant in 
i;i5, and was restored to his full rights as proprietor. After 
the Revolution several harsh measures were passed against 
Roman Catho'-'cs Besides the laws in force in England 
against the public celebration of the Roman Catholic reli- 
gion, which were held to apply to the colony, an Act was 
passed by the Assembly imposing a duty on all Irish servants 
imported, with the view of preventing the introduction of 
Roman Catholics. This seemed especially harsh in a colony 
which had been founded by a Roman Catholic, and where, 
under his government, all sects had enjoyed equal freedom. 
In 1704 these restrictions were so far lessened that Roman 
Catholic priests were allowed to celebrate worship in private 
houses. In their industry, commerce, and mode of hfe the 
Mar) landers resembled their neighbours in Virginia. In one 
respect they were more fortunate. Though jthey did not 
altogether avoid quarrels with the Indians, yet there were no 
serious wars. While the records of Virginia are filled with 
discussions and resolutions concerning the defence of the 
colony against the savages, we find very little of this in the 
history of Maryland. The Susquehannas, the tribe with 
whom the Virginians were engaged in one of their most 
serious wars, were the chief enemies of Maryland. Their 
attacks were mostly confined to the frontiers, and they do not 
seem ever to have endangered the interior of the colony. 
As in Virginia, Acts were passed protecting the Indians from 
being enslaved or other^vise ill treated by the planters. So 
greatly was the authority of the English respected by the 
Indians in Maryland, that in 1663 a chief who was placed at 
the head of a league of tribes thought it well to get the 
formal consent of the English Governor to his election. 



156 NEW YORK. [chap. 



CHAPTER XI. 

NEW YORK. 

Sitllcment of New Netherlnnris (i) — the conslitiiiion (2) — decilings 
with the Indians and the Sivcdes (3) — the English conquest (4) — 
New York under James II. (5) — the revolution and Leisler's 
insurrection (6) — the colony after the revolution (7) — conted 
between the governor and asieinbly (8) — general condition (9). 

I. Settlement of New Netherlands. — As we have seen, 
Virginia and Maryland were separated from New England 
by the Dutch colony of New Netherlands. As that colony 
became an English possession, and afterwards one of the 
United States, it is needful that we should know some- 
thing of its early history. It was, like Virginia, under 
the government of a corporation, the Dutch West India 
Company. The whole management of the colony was 
entrusted to this company, and the Dutch Government only 
kept the right of annulling the appointment of colonial 
officers. The company was also bound to inform the 
Government from time to time as to the state of the colony. 
Unlike the English settlements. New Netherlands depended 
more on trade than agriculture. One result of this was that, 
for convenience in dealing with the Indians, the settlers 
spread inland along the Hudson, and not along the coast. 
Thus, while New Netherlands nominally reached from the 
mouth of the Hudson to that of the Delaware, the whole 
coast between these two rivers was left unoccupied. Besides 
the settlements along the Hudson, there were several in the 
southern part of Long Island, which lies opposite the coast 
between the Hudson and the Connecticut. The company 



XI.l SETrLEI\lENT OF NEW NETHERLANDS. 157 

itself did little in the way of sending out emigrants, but left 
that to a class of landed proprietors called patroons. These 
patroons held estates under the company, which they settled 
with emigrants whom they fitted out and sent over. They 
might purchase estates of unlimited extent on the one condi- 
tion of sending out fifty settlers. They might found town- 
ships, and appoint officers and magistrates for them. Within 
their own boundaries they tried all cases, and had power of 
life and death. By the laws the settlers were allowed to 
appeal to the company, but this right was practically of little 
value, as the patroons generally made the emigrants agree to 
give up this right before they went out. Thus the colony con- 
sisted of a number of small separate States, each governed by 
a single man. In 1640 another class of settlers was admitted. 
Every one who went out accompanied by five other emi- 
grants was allowed two hundred acres of land, and was to 
be independent of the patroons. This provided the colony 
with a class of yeomen much like those of the New England 
colonies. The system of patroons does not seem to have 
answered, and, before the colony passed into the hands of 
the English, they seem to have died out. As long as it 
lasted the system gave rise to much difficulty and many dis- 
putes. The patroons had disputes with the company as to 
the limits of their power, and with private traders as to their 
riglit of trading in any patroon's country without a licence 
from him. Partly owing to these disputes, and partly to the 
folly of Kieft, the Governor, who involved the colony in a 
needless war with the Indians, for the first twenty years New 
Netherlands did not prosper. When Stuyvesant came out 
in 1647, he only found three hundred men able to bear arms. 
Under his government things improved. By 1664 the 
population had increased to ten thousand ; the chief place, 
New Amsterdam, had become a flourishing town, with fifteen 
hundred inhabitants. The settiei's were not all Dutch. Like 



NEW YORK. [CHAP. 



Holland itself, New Netherlands was the chosen refuge of 
men persecuted in their own countries for their religion. 
Besides the Dutch there were Puritans from England, French 
Huguenots fi-om Rochelle, Waldenses and Walloons. The 
Waldenses were Protestants from the south-east of France 
and from Piedmont, who had suffered severe persecutions, 
chiefly from the Dukes of Savoy. The Walloons -were 
Roman Catholics from the Netherlands. They and the 
Huguenots were so numerous that public documents were 
sometimes written in French as well as in Dutch, 
There were too some Swedish settlers on the Delaware. 
At a later time it was said that eighteen different languages 
were spoken in the colony. 

2. The Constitution. — The people of New Netherlands 
did not enjoy anything like the same political freedom as 
their English neighbours. They did not make their own 
laws or fix their own taxes ; yet they were not altogether 
without means of making their wants known, and protecting 
themselves against arbitrary government. In 1641 Kieft 
called together a Board of twelve Deputies, elected by the 
people, to advise him about the war with the Indians. They 
had no power beyond this. In the next year some of them 
of their own accord drew up a paper calling the Governor's 
attention to certain grievances from which the colonists 
suffered. The chief of these was that the Council, which 
ought to have been a check upon the Governor, consisted of 
one member only ; and as the Governor had two votes, the 
whole power was in his hands. They proposed that the 
people should elect four members of the Council. Kieft 
promised to allow this, and dissolved the Board, but did not 
keep his promise. In 1644 he called together a similar 
board to consult about taxation. Kieft wanted to lay a duty 
on certain articles. The Deputies opposed this, declaring 
that the inhabitants could not pay it, and moreover that 



XI.] DEALINGS WITH INDIANS AND SWEDES. 159 

ihey ought lo be taxed only by the company itself, and not 
by the Governor. After a dispute, Kieft imposed the tax, 
but had in some cases to use force in making the colonists 
pay it. In the same year the Deputies sent a memorial to 
the company. They represented the wretched state to which 
Kieft had brought the colon) by his folly in making war on 
the Indians. They advised the company to believe nothing 
that Kieft told them, and they petitioned for a new Governor 
and a regular system of representation. The company 
thereupon recalled Kieft. His successor, Stuyvesant, estab- 
lished an imperfect system of representation. The people 
were to elect eighteen Councillors, of whom he was to choose 
nine. Of these, six were to go out of office each year, but 
before they went out the whole nine were to choose the six 
incoming members. Thus after the first election the people 
had no voice in the matter. In 1647 the Councillors sent a 
memorial to the States-General, setting forth the wants 
and sufferings of the colony. The Government took up the 
matter, passed a resolution recommending certain improve- 
ments, and sent it to the West India Company. The 
amendment in the condition of the colony was to some 
extent due to this. In 1653 a dispute arose between Stuyve- 
sant and the people of New Amsterdam about the tax on 
liquors, in which Stuyvesant at last gave way. 

3. Dealings with the Indians and the Swedes. — Besides 
these disputes the colony was exposed to dangers from without. 
The Dutch settlers, unlike the English, had constant deahngs 
with the Indians, and those dealings often led to quarrels. In 
1643 some trifling misconduct on the part of the Indians was 
made the pretext for an attack. The country of the Indians 
was cruelly ravaged, and many of them killed. In making 
the attack Kieft was actingagainstthe wishes of many of the 
settlers. One man in particular, De Vries, a leading patroon, 
did his utmost to check Kieft. Failing in this, he left the 



i6o NEW YORK. [chap. 

colony in despair, warning Kieft that all the innocent blood 
that he had shed would be avenged on himself. The Indians 
were taken by surprise, but they soon collected their forces, 
ravaged the Dutch country, and penned the settlers within 
the walls of New Amsterdam. After heavy losses on each 
side, peace was made. Besides this there were other less 
important hostilities between the Dutch and the Indians. 
Luckily the settlers, like the New Englanders, contrived to 
make friends with the Mohawks. It is said that the first 
Dutch colonists in 1617 made a treaty with them. This was 
renewed in 1645; and, as. the Indians whom the Dutch 
attacked were enemies to the Mohawks, the alliance was not 
weakened by this war. In 1646 the Dutch got into a dispute 
with the Swedes, who were settled by the river Delaware, on 
land which both nations clain^.ed. "In 165 1 Stuyvesant 
estabhshed a fort on the disputed territory. In 1654 the 
Swedes appeared before the fore with a small force, and the 
Dutch commander surrendered. In the next year Stuyvesant 
retook the place. No further attempt was made to recover 
it, and the only Swedish settlement in America became part 
of New Netherlands. 

4. The English Conquest. — It was but natural that Eng- 
land should covet the territory of New Netherlands. The 
Dutch were then, as the Spaniards had been a century 
before, the great naval and commercial rivals of the English. 
Moreover, as long as New Netherlands belonged to any 
other nation, it was impossible for the northern and southern 
colonies of England to become united. If the English 
Government had foreseen the possibility of the colonies ever 
combining in a revolt against the mother country, they might 
have preferred to keep New Netherlands as a check upon 
them. But the English were not likely to think of that 
danger, and looked on New Netherlands only as interfering 
with their commerce. Moreover, New Amsterdam had the 



XI.] THE ENGLISH CONQUEST. i6r 

best harbour of any place along the coast, and no other river 
gave such a highway for the Indian fur trade as the Hudson. 
The only title which the English had to the place was that 
they claimed to have discovered it before the Dutch. But 
even if this were so, it could hardly be thouglit that this was 
of any weight, after they had suffered the Dutch to occupy 
the country unmolested for some fifty years. Nevertheless, 
in 1664 Charles II. and his advisers, while England and 
Holland were at peace, resolved to assert this claim. They 
sent out a fleet of four ships, with a force of four hundred 
and fifty men on board, under the command of Colonel 
Nicholls. The commissioners who were at the same time 
sent out to New England were ordered to assist Nicholls, 
and to get aid from the New England colonies. Massa- 
chusetts refused help, but the Connecticut settlers, being old 
enemies of the Dutch, came forward readily. In August the 
fleet appeared before New Amsterdam. The place was 
weakly fortified, and ill supplied with men and ammuni- 
tion. Nevertheless Stuyvesant was for holding out. When 
Nicholls sent a letter offering liberal terms of surrender, 
Stuyvesant tore it in pieces. The settlers however demanded 
to see the letter, and the fragments were put together and 
laid before them. The people, when they heard the terms 
offered, flocked to Stuyvesant, and besought him to surrender 
and avoid the risk of an attack. At first he declared that he 
would rather be carried out dead ; but at length, finding that 
scarcely anyone supported him, and that even his own son 
was against him, he yielded. By the terms of the treaty, the 
garrison was allowed to march out with all the honours of 
war, and the property of the settlers was not injured. The 
remaining settlements followed the example of the capital. 
One place alone. New Amstel, held out. It vv^as taken with 
slight loss, and by October the whole country had submitted. 
By this conquest England obtained the whole sea-coast from 

M 



NEW YORK. [chap. 



the Kennebec to the Savannah. Thus the acquirement of 
New Netherlands by England was a turning-point in 
American history. It made it possible for the English 
colonies to become one united dominion. The new territory 
was granted to the Duke of York as proprietor. The name 
of the country and of the capital were both changed to New 
York. Part of the territory was sold to a company of pro- 
prietors, and afterwards formed the province of New Jersey. 
The rest was placed under the government of Nicholls. 
The charter granted to the Duke of York gave him full 
power to make laws. Nothing was said, as in the charter of 
Maryland, about the advice or assistance of the freemen. In 
1665 Nicholls called together a Convention of the settlers, to 
advise and help him in drawing up a system of government 
and a code of laws, but without allowing them any power of 
enacting laws. The government was to be in the hands of 
a Governor and a Council. No steps were taken towards 
giving the people representatives. The only harsh measure 
adopted was that all grants of land had to be renewed, and a 
fee paid for renewal. In 1667 Nicholls was succeeded by Fran- 
cis Lovelace, a member of a distinguished royalist family. 
In 1672 war broke out between England and Holland. In 
the next year a Dutch fleet threatened New York. Lovelace 
and the English officers with him showed no such resolute 
spirit as Stuyvesant had displayed in a like case, and the 
place was at once surrendered. The country took back its 
old name, while the capital was called Orange, in honour of 
the Stadtholder, William of Orange, then at the height of his 
popularity. But the Dutch only held the country for fifteen 
months, too short a time to make any important change, and 
m 1674 the treaty of Breda ended the war, and restored the 
territory to the English. Thenceforth New York, as it was 
again called, remained an English possession. 

5. New York under James II. — The Governor now 



XI.] NEW YORK UNDER JAMES II. 163 

appointed by the Duke of York was Andros, whose later 
dealings with New England have been already told. As 
before, the transfer to the English was effected with little or 
no injury to the private rights of the settlers. Their desire 
for a Representative Assembly was at first disregarded. In 
1681 the people made a formal petition for a government like 
those of the New England colonies, and the Duke promised 
to consider their request. In 1683 Colonel Dongan, an 
Irishman of good family, was sent over as Governor. He 
was instructed to call an Assembly of eighteen representa- 
tives elected by the freeholders. They were to make laws, 
subject to the Duke's approval, and to decide about taxation. 
In October the first New York Assembly met. Its first 
proceeding was to draw up a charter of liberties. This 
enacted that the government should be perpetually vested in a 
Governor, Council, and Assembly ; that all freeholders and 
freemen of corporations should have votes ; that freedom 
of conscience should be granted to all Christians, and rhat no 
tax should be levied without the consent of the Assembly. 
This charter of liberties received the King's assent. The 
dealings of James II. with New York are as hard to be 
understood as any part of his seemingly strange and capri- 
cious policy. In 1686 the Assembly of New York, like those 
of the New England colonies, was annulled, and the whole 
government transferred to Dongan and his Council. He was 
instructed to provide for the celebration of the worship of 
the Church of England throughout the colony. Moreover, 
no one was to keep a school without a licence from the 
Archbishop of Canterbury. About this time the settlers 
had important dealings with the Indians. The English 
Government kept to the policy of their Dutch predecessors, 
and encouraged the friendship of the Mohawks. In 1678 
Andros had a friendly conference with them, and in 1683 
Dongan renewed the alliance. In the next year ambassadors 

M 2 



I64 NEW YORK. [chap. 

from the five nations of the Mohawk confederacy met the 
Governors of New York and Virginia at Albany, made them 
solemn promises of friendship, and asked to have the Duke 
of York's arms placed over their log forts. Throughout his 
term of office, Dongan seems to have been more alive than 
most of our Colonial Governors to the importance of encourag- 
ing the friendship of the Mohawks, and preventing any alliance 
between them and the French ; it was in a great measure 
due to this that, while Massachusetts and New Hampshire 
were being ravaged by the Canadian Indians, New York 
enjoyed security. 

6. The Revolution and Leisler's Insurrection— As in New 
England, so in New York, the English revolution of 1688 was 
accompanied by a colonial one. But the New York revolu- 
tion was not marked by the same moderation as that in New 
England. In 1688 Dongan was succeeded by Andros. He 
was represented in New York by a deputy, Nicholson, a man 
wanting in judgment, with neither firmness to control nor 
ability to conciliate the colonists. When the news of the 
revolution arrived the people rose, under the leadership of 
one Leisler. He was a German by birth, able, honest, and 
energetic; but violent, ambitious, uneducated, and utterly 
without political experience. He took the government into 
his own hands, turned out those officers who differed from 
him in politics or religion, and imprisoned some of them. 
He used his power in so arbitrary a fashion that a counter- 
revolution soon sprang up. The party opposed to Leisler 
established itself at Albany, and for a time the colony was 
divided between two governments. The Albany party was 
far more temperate than Leisler, and, like the New Eng- 
landers, held its authority only until some orders should 
come out from England, whereas Leisler seized the governor- 
ship without waiting for any commission. When a letter 
came out from King William to Nicholson, authorizing him 



XI.] THE COLONY AFTER THE REVOLUTION. 165 

to carry on the government, Leisler intercepted it, and 
told the people that hd had a commission from the Crown. 
In 1 69 1 the King sent Colonel Sloughter as Governor. 
Unluckily he was detained on his way by bad weather. 
Major Ingoldsby, who was next in command, but who 
had no authority to act as commander-in-chief or governor, 
landed in February, and summoned Leisler to give up the 
government. He refused, on the ground that Ingoldsby had 
no authority, to which the latter could only answer that 
Leisler had none either. Leisler then established himself in 
the fort of New York and fired on the King's troops. In 
March, Sloughter arrived. Leisler would seem to have had 
no serious purpose of resisting his authority, or of prolonging 
the contest ; but Sloughter at once seized the agents who were 
sent to ascertain his intentions, and, on Leisler's surrender- 
ing, caused him and his chief associates in the revolt to 
be imprisoned and subsec[uently tried for treason. Eight 
of the ringleaders were sentenced to death, but all of them, 
except Leisler and his chief supporter, Milborne, were par- 
doned. Sloughter, it is said, was unwilling to put any to 
death, but was overpersuaded by those who had suffered 
from Leisler's tyranny. 

7. The Colony after the Revolution. — In March, 1691, 
Sloughter called an Assembly. The Assembly annulled all 
the Acts of Leisler's government. It also passed an Act 
which was designed to be a sort of charter for the colony, 
like the earlier charter of liberties. This Act set forth the 
rights of the colonists and their relation to the Crown. It 
enacted that New York should be under a government con- 
sisting, like that of other colonies, of a Governor, Council, and 
Representatives, and that this body only should have power to 
impose taxes. The King refused his assent to this Act, and New 
York was thus left without any written constitution. Never- 
theless the proposed form of government was adopted. The 



i66 NEW YORK. [chap. 

division into two parties, which had begun with Leisler's 
insurrection, lasted afterTiis death. Fletcher, who succeeded 
Sloughter in 1691, was regarded as the champion of those 
who had opposed Leisler. His folly and violence soon 
involved him in disputes with the Assembly. A Bill was 
passed by the Assembly for endowing the clergy at the ex- 
pense of the colony. Fletcher wished to add a clause giving 
the Governor the right of appointment. The Assembly 
refused their assent to this, whereupon Fletcher reproved and 
dismissed them. Moreover he granted large tracts of land 
in the backwoods to his favourites, thereby impoverishing 
the State and endangering the alliance with the Mohawks. 
In 1698 Fletcher was succeeded by Lord Bellamont. Though 
a far abler and better man than Fletcher, he too suffered 
himself to be made the leader of a party, consisting mainly 
of Leisler's surviving followers. He annulled Fletcher's 
grants of land, and in a speech to the Assembly heaped abuse 
upon his memory, saying that he had himself received " the 
legacy of a divided people, an empty purse, a few miserable, 
naked, half-starved soldiers ; in a word, the whole govern- 
ment out of frame." In 1701 Bellamont died, having done 
as much to strengthen the popular party by his encourage- 
ment as Fletcher had by his ill-judged severity. The next 
governor, Lord Cornbury, made himself hateful to both 
parties alike. He was a grandson of the famous Lord 
Clarendon. Like his father and grandfather, he was a strong 
partizan of the Established Church, but his whole conduct 
and character were such as to bring disgrace on any cause 
that he took up. He was extravagant and dishonest, fond 
of low pleasures and indecent buffoonery. He embezzled 
money raised by the Assembly for public purposes, and 
imposed illegal taxes and exorbitant fees. He also incurred 
the displeasure of the people by threatening to put in force 
the penal laws against Dissenters, which the colonists alleged 



XL] THE GOVERNOR AND THE ASSEMBLY. 167 

were not binding out of England. The Assembly passed a 
series of resolutions denouncing his conduct, in one of which 
they declared that no money could be levied in the colony 
without the consent of the Assembly. In 1708 Cornbury's 
misdeeds were brought before the notice of the Queen. She 
deprived him of his governorship, and his creditors there- 
upon seized him and threw him into prison. 

8. Contest between the Governor and the Assembly. — 
For the next forty years the history of New York, like that of 
Massachusetts during the same time, is little more than a 
string of disputes between the Governor and the Assembly. 
In Fletcher's time, the whole of the State revenue was 
handed over to the Governor, and the expenditure of it was 
entirely entrusted to him. In 1705 this was so far changed, 
that a treasurer was appointed by the colony to receive all 
money raised for any special purpose over and above the 
regular revenue. In 1710 the disputes began. The Assembly 
claimed the sole power of levying taxes, and denied the 
Council any right of amending money bills, declaring that 
the people could not be deprived of their property except by 
their own consent as given by their i-epresentatives. They 
also said plainly that, even if the opinion of the English 
Board for Plantations was opposed to them, they should still 
hold to their own view. Soon after this. Governor Hunter 
established a Court of Chancery. The Assembly passed a 
resolution that this was illegal, and that no fees could be 
exacted without their consent. They also claimed the right 
of controlling the expenditure of the revenue. Soon after 
however they gave way on this latter point. Hunter was 
succeeded in 1720 by William Burnet, the same who was 
afterwards Governor of Massachusetts. In his time the 
dispute about the Court of Chancery was renewed. The 
representatives so far prevailed that the fees in that court 
were lowered. Under Governor Cosby, who came out in 1732, 



1 68 NEW YORK. [chap. 

the disputes reached their height. At first he succeeded in 
enhsting the Assembly on his side, and for a while things 
went on as he wished. The length of time during which an 
Assembly might continue without an election was not defined 
by law ; and Cosby, finding that he had got an Assembly that 
suited him, kept it for the unprecedented period of six years 
from its election. The people became furious, but the 
power of dissolving the Assembly lay with the Governor, and 
there was no remedy. A fresh Assembly was not elected 
till 1737, a year after Cosby's death. But the temporary 
ascendancy of the Governor's party had only served to 
inflame and strengthen the opposition to it, and the next 
Assembly took a bolder course than any before it. Their 
position was probably improved by the fact that the new 
Governor had not yet come out, and was represented by a 
Lieutenant-Governor. The Assembly at once drew up an 
address to the Lieutenant-Governor, plainly declaring that 
they would only grant such a revenue as they deemed proper, 
and that only for one year ; and that they would not even do 
that, until such laws had been passed as they thought need- 
ful for the welfare of the colony. The Lieutenant-Governor, 
however, managed to get on with the Assembly, and some 
important acts were passed during the session. The Assem- 
bly voted liberal grants for the support of the French war then 
going forward, but refused to give the Lieutenant-Governor 
the control over the public funds. From this time the 
claims of the Assembly seem to have been quietly admitted. 
9, General Condition. — During this time. New York, 
unlike the other northern colonics, had enjoyed security from 
the Indians. This was partly due to its position, sheltered 
as it was by the country of the Mohawks. Moreover Peter 
Schuyler, who commanded the New York forces for a con- 
siderable time both before and after the revolution, took 
great pains to renew the alliance with the Mohawks ; and 



XL] GENERAL CONDITION. 169 

wishing to impress on the English Court the necessity of 
keeping friends with them, he took five of their chiefs over 
to England. While it remained in the possession of the 
Dutch, New York enjoyed no great prosperity, but under 
English rule it became one of the richest and most thriving 
of the American colonies. The climate was good, and the 
soil fertile. As in Virginia, the rivers gave great facilities 
for carriage. The people were more frugal in their habits, 
and, it is said, more thrifty and gain-loving, than the New 
Englanders. Their exports consisted mainly of farm-pro- 
duce, timber, and fur. In the fur trade, the neighbourhood 
of the Mohawks and the possession of the Hudson gave 
New York a great advantage over the other States. As 
under Dutch rule, the colony continued to be a refuge for 
emigrants of all nations. Governor Hunter brought out 
three thousand German Protestants who had fled from the 
Palatinate to avoid persecution. A number of French 
Huguenots also came out. Among this multitude of different 
races there was of cotirse great diversity of religion. There 
were English Episcopalians, Dutch and French Calvinists, 
Scotch Presbyterians, German Reformers, Quakers and 
Moravians, Baptists and Jews. In fact, whether we look to 
the variety of its resources, the diversity of its people, or the 
number of its religions, we may say that New York in the 
eighteenth century was a sort of model and representative of 
the whole body of English colonies. 



I70 THE CAROLINAS. [chap. 



CHAPTER XII. 

THE CAROLINAS. 

First settlement (l) — disturbances {2) — improvement unJer Archdale 
(3) — wars with ike Indians (4) — war zvitk the Spaniards and 
their Indian allies (^) — abolition of the proprietary government 
(6) — general condition (7), 

I. First Settlement. — Between the southern frontier of 
Virginia and the Spanish settlements lay a large tract of 
land, for the most part fertile and well watered. Raleigh's 
two colonies had been placed on this coast. After them no 
English settlement seems to have been made south of 
Virginia till about 1660. At that time two small parties of 
emigrants established themselves in this country, one from 
Virginia, the other from Massachusetts. In 1663 Lord 
Clarendon, Lord Shaftesbury, and other friends of Charles 
II., obtained from him a grant of land. Theij territory 
began at the southern boundary of Virginia, and reached 
nearly five hundred miles along the coast. It was to be 
called Carolina, in honour of the King. The colony was 
probably intended in a great measure as a refuge for those 
royalists who had suffered heavy losses in the civil war, and 
whom the King was unable or unwilling to compensate in 
any other way. Full power was given to the proprietors to 
make laws and to manage the affairs of the province. One 
of the first things that the proprietors did was to draw up a 
most elaborate constitution for their new State. This was 
done by John Locke, the great philosopher, and Lord 
Shaftesbury, and was called the F^undamcntal Constitutions. 
The country was to be minutely and exactly divided into 



XII.] FIRST SETTLEMENT. 171 

counties, which were to be subdivided into seignories, 
baronies, precincts, and colonies. There were to be noble- 
men of two orders, in numbers proportioned to those of the 
settlers. The eldest of the proprietors was to be called the 
Palatine, and was to be the supreme officer. Each of the 
proprietors was to hold a court in his own barony with six 
councillors and twelve deputies, called assistants. There 
was to be a parliament, meeting once in two years,' and con- 
sisting of the proprietors, the noblemen, and the representa- 
tives elected by the freeholders. This constitution met with 
the same fate as the elaborate one devised by Gorges for his 
colony. It was drawn up without any real knowledge of 
the special wants and the manner of life of a new State, nor 
do the proprietors, after framing it, ever seem to have made 
any vigorous effort to put it in force. At first they did not 
even attempt to unite the various settlements under a 
single government. Each of those already existing was 
placed under a separate government, composed like those 
in the other colonies of a Governor, a Council, and a House 
of Representatives. The Council was to be appointed by 
the proprietors out of a number of candidates chosen by 
the people. The two settfements were called after two of 
the proprietors, the Duke of Albemarle (formerly General 
Monk), and the Earl of Clarendon. Albemarle was the set- 
tlement on the borders of Virginia formed by the Virgini- 
ans. The Massachusetts men, further to the south, were 
soon driven away by fear of the Indians or absorbed in a 
more numerous company which arrived from the Barbadoes. 
The proprietors, anxious to people their territory, tempted 
their settlers by very liberal terms. They gave each man 
a hundred acres of land for himself, a hundred for every one 
of his children, and fifty for every woman or slave that he 
took out. In return he had to provide himself with a gun, a 
supply of ammunition, and food for six months. Besides 



172 THE CAROLINAS. [chap. 

these settlements the proprietors fomied a third, about three 
hundred miles to the south. This was divided into four 
counties, and like the northern settlement was at first chiefly 
peopled from Barbadoes. Though they were not yet so 
called, we may for convenience speak of these settle- 
ments by the names which they afterwards bore, North and 
South Carolina, the former including both Albemarle and 
Clarendon. 

2. Disturbances. — The whole country before long fell into 
confusion. The proprietors always gave out that the separate 
governments were only temporary, and were to be replaced 
by the Fundamental Constitutions. Thus the people, though 
enjoying present freedom, were dissatisfied, not knowing 
how soon they might be subjected to a government distaste- 
ful and unsuited to them. Moreover many of the settlers 
seem to have been men of doubtful character. The pro- 
prietors ordered that no person should be sued for debts 
incurred out of the colony. This apparently was done to 
attract settlers thither. Thus the colony, like Virginia in 
early times, was in danger of becoming a refuge for the 
destitute and ill-conducted. Their mode of life was not 
likely to better matters. For several years there was no 
minister of religion in Albemarle. The proprietors too 
showed little regard for the welfare of the colony in their 
choice of officers, and disturbances soon broke out. In the 
northern province the proprietors appointed one of their own 
body, Millar, who was already unpopular with the settlers, 
to be the collector of quit-rents. Among a poor and not 
over-loyal people, the post was a difficult one, and IMillar 
made it more so by harshness and imprudence. A revolu- 
tion broke out, Millar was seized, but he escaped, and the 
Governor, Eastchurch, was deposed. He died just after, and 
one of the proprietors, Sothel, went out as Governor. He 
fared no better, and after six years of confusion was forced 



XII.] IMPROVEMENT UNDER ARCHDALE. 173 

to resign. He then went to South Carolina, where he took 
up the cause of the settlers, headed an insurrection, in which 
Colleton the Governor, also a proprietor, was deposed, and 
was himself chosen by the people in his stead. From this 
it would seem as if either Sothel's misdeeds in North 
Carolina had been exaggerated by his enemies, or as if there 
was hardly any communication between the Northern and 
Southern provinces. The proprietors, though they had been 
indifferent to the welfare of the settlers, showed no wish to 
deal harshly with them. In 1693 they passed a resolution 
declaring that, as the settlers wished to keep their present 
government rather than adopt the Fundamental Constitu- 
tions, it would be best to give them their own way. Thus 
Locke's constitution perished, having borne no fruit. 

3. Improvement under Archdale. — Two years later John 
Archdale, one of the proprietors, went out as Governor. He 
was a Quaker, and seems to have been in every way well 
fitted for the post. By lowering the quit-rents and allowing 
them to be paid in produce instead of money, by making 
peace with the Indians, and by attention to roads and public 
works, he gave prosperity and, for a time, peace to the colony. 
One thing which especially furthered its welfare was the 
introduction of rice. The climate and soil of South Carolina 
were found to be specially suited to it, and the colony soon 
became the rice-market for all the American colonies. Silk 
and cotton also might have been produced to advantage, but 
the cultivation of rice was so profitable that little time or 
labour was left for any other work. One bad effect of this 
was that it forced the colonists to employ large numbers of 
negro slaves. The work in the rice plantations was very 
unhealthy, and could only be endured by the natives of a 
sultry climate. This familiarized the Carolina settlers with 
slavery, and they fell into the regular practice of kidnapping 
the Indians and selling them to the West India Islands. 



174 THE CAROLINAS. [chap. 

4. Wars with the Indians. — Partly through the above 
mentioned practice, both Carolinas were at an early time 
engaged in serious wars with the Indians. These were the 
more dangerous, because the settlers lived like those of 
Virginia for the most part in scattered plantations, each on 
his own land. Fortunately for the settlers in North Carolina, 
the Indians in that neighbourhood were mostly broken up 
into many small tribes, under no common head. But in 
South Carolina the Creeks, the Cherokees, the Appalachians, 
and the Yamassees were all formidable nations. The first 
important contest with the Indians was in 1703. In that 
year James Moore, Governor of South Carolina, invaded the 
country of the Appalachians, on the ground that they were 
allies of the Spaniards, with whom we were then at war. He 
devastated their country and compelled them to submit to 
the English Government. After that, he planted fourteen 
hundred of them on the southern frontier as a sort of out- 
post against the Spaniards in Florida and the Southern 
Indians. In 171 1 North Carolina became engaged in a 
more serious Indian war. About that time a number of 
German Protestants from the Palatinate, being persecuted 
by their Elector, fled to various parts of America. A number 
of them settled in North Carolina. Their leader, Baron 
Grafenried, with Lawson, the surveyor of the colony, went 
to measure lands for the German settlement. The Tuscaroras, 
a warlike tribe, thinking that their territory was encroached 
on, seized them. Lawson was put to death, but Grafenried 
pleaded that he was a foreigner, and had nothing to do with 
the English, and the Indians accordingly spared him. It 
seems doubtful whether the Tuscaroras had been already 
meditating an attack, or whether they thought that, having 
killed Lawson, they would have to fight, and so had better 
strike the first blow. They invaded the English territory in 
small bands, and cut off in one da)- about a hundred and 



XII.] JFA/i WITH THE SPANIARDS. 175 

twenty settlers. Yet they showed some sense both of 
humanity and honesty by sparing the Germans, on the 
strength of a treaty made with Grafenried. The North 
CaroHna settlers sent for help to their southern neighbours. 
They at once sent a small force with a number of Indian 
allies from the southern tribes. No decisive blow was struck. 
But the next year a large force was sent from the south, and 
the Tuscaroras were crushed. A peace was made, by which 
they promised to give up to the English twenty Indians, the 
chief contrivers of Lawson's murder and of the massacre, 
to restore all their prisoners and spoil, and to give two 
hostages from each of their villages. The greater part of the 
Tuscarora nation left the country and joined the confederacy 
of the Mohawks. In tbis, as in the New England wars, the 
Indians were defeated rather through their own divisions 
than through the strength of the English. 

5. War with the Spaniards and their Indian Allies. — In 
17 1 5 South Carolina was exposed to yet greater danger. From 
the very outset, the Spaniards in Florida had been jealous 
and unfriendly neighbours to the English. Their chief 
settlement was at St. Augustine, a hundred and seventy 
miles south of the river Savannah, which was practically 
the southern boundary of Carolina. They had encouraged 
the slaves of the English to run away, and as early as 1670 
had made a raid into the English territory. For thirty years 
after this no open hostility took place. In 1702, as Spain 
and England were at war, Moore planned an expedition 
against St. Augustine by sea and land. He reached the 
town, but alarmed by the arrival of two Spanish ships, he 
retreated without striking a blow. Soon after the Spaniards 
began to seduce the Yamassees, a large and powerful tribe 
who had hitherto been friendly. This design was fur- 
thered by the humanity of Charles Craven, the governor 
of South Carolina, who often sent back the Yamassees with 



176 THE CAROLIXAS. [chap. 

Spanish prisoners, whom they had taken and would have 
tortured. This gave the Spaniards opportunities of in- 
triguing with the Yamassee chiefs. In 17 15 a combined 
force of the Yamassees and other soutliern tribes, making in 
all more than seven thousand warriors, attacked the English 
settlements. The Governor could only bring against them 
twelve hundred men. Yet he defeated them after a fierce 
battle, and drove them out of the colony, though not before 
they had killed four hundred settlers. It is said that the 
Spaniards at St. Augustine welcomed the Yamassees on their 
return, ringing bells and firing cannon. Though repulsed, the 
Yamassees continued for many years to harass the English. 
Four years later a Spanish fleet sailed from Havanna against 
the Carolinas. It first attacked the Bahamas, islands 
off the southern point of Florida, where there was an 
English settlement, but it was beaten off. The defeat, 
followed by a heavy storm, prevented it from attacking the 
Carolinas. The multitude of slaves made the hostility of 
the Spaniard specially dangerous. If the slaves should 
revolt, the settlers might at any time have to deal with 
enemies without and rebels within. In the case of the 
Indians this danger was less felt, since the Indians and the 
negroes detested one another, and there was little fear of 
any sort of combination between them. But the Spaniards 
looked upon the multitude of slaves as a weak point in our 
settlements, and in a later war they paraded a legiment 
made up wholly of negroes, officers and all, in front of their 
forces, as a bait to the English slaves to join them. 

6. Abolition of the Proprietary Government. — In the 
meantime, internal disturbances had sprung up in both 
colonies. In 1705, the Dissenters in South Carolina sent a 
petition to the Queen, calling attention to the misgovernment 
of the proprietors, and the law officers of the Crown were 
ordered to commence proceedings for a writ of Quo warra/ito. 



XII.] ABOLITION OF FROPRIE TAR Y R ULE. 1 7 7 

Nothing however came of this. In 17 17, the Assembly of 
South Carolina passed a law that the election of representa- 
tives should be held, not, as before, at the capital, Charlestown, 
but in the different counties. This, by making it easier for 
all the freemen, especially for the poorer sort, to vote, 
strengthened the hands of the people and weakened the influ- 
ence of the proprietors. At the same time, the Assembly 
imposed a heavy import duty on English goods. The pro- 
prietors annulled both these Acts. They also provoked the 
colonists by increasing the number of the Council from seven 
to twelve. Moreover, there was a general feeling in the 
colony that the proprietors cared only for their own pockets, 
and were indifferent to the welfare of the people. The 
colonists accordingly broke out into open revolt against 
the proprietors. Robert Johnson, the Governor, was him- 
self popular, and the people endeavoured to enlist him on 
their side ; but he remained loyal to the proprietors. The 
colonists then deposed him, and appointed James Moore to be 
Governor. At the same time they sent over an agent to Eng- 
land to plead their cause. The effect of his representation 
was that South Carolina was made a royal colony. Nichol- 
son, a man of considerable experience in the colonies, was 
sent out as the first Governor. Under the new system, the 
colony throve, and the rapid improvement in its condition was 
the best proof of the misgovernmentof the proprietors. Peace 
was made with the Southern Indians. Clergymen were sent 
out, partly at the expense of the colony, partly by the Society 
for the Propagation of the Gospel, and schools were 
established throughout the colony. Before long. North 
Carolina too passed under the government of the Crown. 
Though there was not such an open display of enmity as in the 
southern colony, yet the people were known to be disaffected 
to the proprietors. In 1729, the proprietors voluntarily sur- 
rendered their rights, and North Carolina became a royal 

N 



178 THE CAROLINAS. [chap. 

colony. The change was made without dispute, and ap- 
parently with the good will of all concerned. 

7. General Condition. — In spite of these disturbances the 
actual resources of the two colonies, especially of the southern 
provinces, were so great that, when quiet was restored, they 
quickly became rich and prosperous. In the whole country 
there was but one town, Charleston, the capital of South 
Carolina. Its position, and its neighbourhood to the West 
India Islands, made it the most important place south of 
New York. About two hundred ships sailed thence every 
year. In climate and soil, the two colonies were much alike. 
But while the rivers of South Carolina afforded good harbour- 
age for small vessels, most of those in North Carolina were 
lost in large and unwholesome swamps before reaching the 
sea. This, coupled with the fact that there was no place in 
North Carolina like Charleston, gave the southern colony a 
superiority in commerce, and hence in political activity and 
education, which it long kept. In one point the two Caro- 
linas resembled New York rather than their nearer neigh- 
bours Virginia and Maryland. The population included a 
large number of foreigners, French, German, and Swiss, most 
of them refugees, who had fled from persecution in their own 
country. 



XIII. ] FJRST SE TTLEMENT OF NE W J ERSE F. 1 79 



CHAPTER XIII. 

THE QUAKER COLONIES. 

First settlement of New Jersey (i) — Quakers' settlement of West 
New Jersey (2) — transfer of East New Jersey (3) — the New 
Jersey charters threatened (4) — state of the colony at he revo- 
liition (5) — the Jerseys united under the Crown (6) — William 
Penn (7) — settlement of PennsylvaJiia (8) — troubles in the 
colony (9) — general condition (lo). 

I. First settlement of New Jersey. — In the history of New 
England we have already met with the sect of Quakers, or 
Friends. The first members of that sect were wild and noisy 
fanatics, but before long men of good family and education 
joined them, and under such leaders the Quakers took an im- 
portant part in the colonization of America. The greatest 
and most prominent of these men was William Penn, the 
founder of Pennyslvania. But, before that colony was settled, 
another had come into being, not consisting wholly of 
Quakers, but numbering many of them among its inhabitants. 
That State was New Jersey. As we have already seen, the 
Duke of York, as soon as he came into possession of New 
Netherlands, sold about one-twelfth of it, that is to say, some 
seven thousand square miles, to Lord Berkeley and Sir 
George Carteret. Although this only formed a small part of 
his whole territory, it was in value scarcely inferior to all the 
rest put together. For it included nearly the whole sea- 
board of about a hundred and twenty miles in length, and 
consequently it was the best place for fresh colonists. More- 
over the greater part of it was almost uninhabited, and the 
proprietors could sell or let the land in parcels, while in the 

N 2 



l8o THE QUAKER COLONIES. [chap. 



rest of New Netherlands there were Dutch and Swedes, who 
claimed the soil as their own, and often lefused any payment 
to the proprietors. This territory vi'as also well protected 
from the Indians, on the west by the river Delaware, 
on the north and north-west by the inhabited districts of 
New Netherlands. Moreover, unlike most of the colo- 
nies, it had a fixed boundary to the west, and thus the 
settlers were kept from straggling, and held together in towns 
and villages. When Nicholls, the Governor of New York, 
discovered all this, thinking that his master had done un- 
wisely to part with the land, he tried to set aside the sale, but 
in vain. The new colony was called New Jersey, in honour 
of Carteret, who had bravely defended Jersey against the 
parliamentary forces in the great rebellion. The govern- 
ment was to consist, like those of the other colonies, of a 
Governor, Council, and Representatives. No taxes were to be 
imposed except by consent of this government. The pro- 
prietors retained the right of annulling any law, and of ap- 
pointing colonial officers. All religious sects were to enjoy 
liberty of worship, and equal political rights. At the time of 
the purchase, New Jersey was almost uninhabited. A few 
Dutch and Swedes had settled in the country, and a few 
New England Puritans, who had been driven out of Massa- 
chusetts, among them some of Mrs. Hutchinson's followers, 
had sought a refuge there, and had been allowed by the 
Dutch to form settlements. Several of these had obtained a 
right to the soil by purchase from the Indians. In 1665, 
Philip Carteret, a nephew of Sir George, was sent out as 
Governor. He founded a town, called, after Lady Carteret, 
Elizabethtown. • A number of colonists came in from New 
England. In 1668, the first Assembly was held at Elizabeth 
town, and some of the laws passed show that the colonists 
were influenced by the ideas and habits of New England. In 
1670 a dispute arose between the proprietors and the settlers. 



xni.] QUAKERS' SETTLEMENT OF WEST JERSEY. i8i 

•The former claimed quit-rents for the land. The latter 
refused to pay, pleading that, by buying the ground from the 
Indians, they had got full ownership of it, and that, if they 
allowed the proprietors' claim, they would be paying twice 
over. The dispute led to an insurrection. In 1672 the people 
drove out Philip Carteret and the other government officers, 
and chose as Governor, James Carteret, natural son of Sir 
George, who had nevertheless taken the side of the settlers. 
A year later the Dutch, as we have seen, got back for a 
short time all that had been taken from them by the English. 
But in New Jersey, as in New York, the short period of 
Dutch occupation made no special change. 

2. Quakers' settlement of West New Jersey. — When by 
the treaty of 1674 the Dutch settlements were finally given 
up to the English, the King granted them by a fresh deed to 
the Duke of York. This grant took in the lands which the 
Duke had sold to Berkeley and Carteret. They contended 
that their right still held good, and the Duke granted their 
claim. Nevertheless, he afterwards asserted a right of levying 
certain duties in New Jersey, which led him into several dis- 
putes, both with the proprietors and the settlers. In 1674, Lord 
Berkeley, being dissatisfied with the results of his colony, and 
with his ill-treatment, as it must have seemed to him, at the 
hands of the Duke of York and the colonists, sold his right in 
the land to two Quakers, Fenwick and Bylling. Soon after, 
Bylling, in consequence of a dispute with Fenwick, sold his 
share to three other Quakers, of whom William Penn was 
one. They, wishing to set up a separate colony, persuaded 
Sir George Carteret to divide the territory with them. This 
he did, and for some time it formed two separate States, 
East and West New Jersey, the former belonging to Carteret, 
the latter to the Quakers. The eastern division contained 
about four thousand settlers. The western was much more 
scantily inhabited, and so was fitter for the purpose of its 



l82 THE QUAKER COLONIES. [chap, 

proprietors. Their object was to found a colony which might 
be a refuge for the Quakers, as New England had been for 
the Puritans. They drew up a constitution for their new 
State. Except in two points, it was like the earlier con- 
stitution framed by Carteret and Berkeley. The Council 
was not to be appointed by the proprietors, but chosen 
by the Assembly, and to prevent disturbances at elections 
the voting for representatives was to be by ballot. In 
1677, four hundred Quakers emigrated to West New 
Jersey. In 1680, a dispute arose between the proprietors 
and the Duke of York. Andros, who was then Governor 
of New York, tried to levy an import duty in New Jersey; 
Penn and his colleagues resisted. They pleaded that they 
had bought the land from Lord Berkeley ; that they had 
thereby acquired his rights; that one of these rights was that 
the colony should be subject to no laws, but those of its own 
making and those of England, and that therefore a law im- 
posed by Andros could not bind them. They represented 
that to tax the settlers without their consent would be infring- 
ing their rights as Englishmen, and that they would never have 
braved the perils of a distant voyage and a new country, un- 
less with a hope of having those rights enlarged rather than 
lessened. The English Judges before whom the question 
came decided in favour of New Jersey. 

■ 3. Transfer of East New Jersey. — Meanwhile East Jersey 
had undergone a complete change. In 1679, Sir George 
Carteret died ; his affairs were in such a bad state that it 
was needful to sell his property for the benefit of his cre- 
ditors. The Quakers, satisfied with the success of their 
settlement in West Jersey, decided to make a like attempt 
in the eastern colony. Accordingly, Penn and eleven others 
purchased it fi-om Carteret's representatives. But as East, 
unlike West, Jersey had already a large number of settlers, 
the new proprietors did not attempt to make it wholly a 



xiil. ] STATE OF COL ONY AT THE RE VOL U TLON. 1 83 

Quaker settlement. They a'^sociated with them a number 
of Scotchmen, and the colony was soon filled with Scotch 
emigrants. The government was like that of the western 
colony, except that the Council consisted of the proprietors 
and their deputies. The more important officers were to 
be appointed by the Governor and Council. All Christians 
were eligible for public offices, and no man was to be molested 
in any way for his religion. 

4, The New Jersey Charters threatened. — James II.'s 
scheme for making one great State out of the northern 
colonics took in both the Jerseys. To carry it into execu- 
tion, in 1686, writs of Quo ivairaiito were issued against both 
governments. The professed grounds were some charges of 
smuggling brought against the inhabitants. The proprietors 
of East Jersey yielded their patent on condition that the 
King should not meddle with their private rights over the 
land. West Jersey would probably have been forced to do 
likewise, but, before the surrender of the eastern colony 
could take effect, James had ceased to reign. 

5. State of the Colony at the Revolution. — The Revolution 
brought no change in the constitution of either of the colonies. 
By 1700, the number of settlers in East Jersey was about 
twelve thousand and in West Jersey about eight thousand. 
The inhabitants were prosperous, though not wealthy. Like 
Virginia, the country was abundantly supplied with rivers, 
and water carriage was easy ; but the settlers did not live in 
scattered plantations like the Virginians. There were some 
twelve towns, of which Burlington and Elizabethtown were 
the largest, each containing between two and three hundred 
houses. From the first the country seems to have been 
almost deserted by the Indians, and by 1700 there were not 
more than two hundred in both colonies. Their small num- 
ber was not due to any cruelty on the part of the settlers. 
On the other hand, the two races seem to have been perfectly 



i84 THE QUAKER COLONIES. [chap. 

friendly, and the English are snid to have found the Indians 
so helpful that they wished for more of them. 

6. The Jerseys united under the Crown. — Notwithstanding 
the prosperity of the two colonies, neither of them brought 
much good to their proprietors. Both changed hands several 
times, and in the process various disputes arose. Different 
persons claimed the governorship at the same time, each 
professing to be appointed by a majority of the proprietors. 
Besides this, the settlers became engaged in a dispute with 
New York. The government of that State, presuming on 
its old connexion with New Jersey, attempted to levy a tax 
on the inhabitants. The Jersey Settlers refused to pay, and 
the question was referred to the Crown lawyers in England. 
They ruled that no colony could be taxed, except by Act of 
Parliament or by its own Assembly. Wearied with these 
disputes, and finding little profit from their property, in 1702 
the proprietors of both colonies surrendered their rights to 
the Crown. The two provinces were again united, and New 
Jersey became a royal colony. The new constitution was 
after the ordinary colonial pattern. There was to be a 
Governor and twelve Councillors, appointed by the Crown, 
and twenty-four Deputies elected by the people. The right 
of voting for deputies was confined to those who possessed 
a hundred acres of land, or 50/. worth of other property. 
The Governor was to appoint all officers, and to conmiand the 
forces of the colony. Political equality was granted to all 
sects, except Roman Catholics. The first Governor appointed 
was Lord Cornbury. As in New York, he made himself odious 
by imposing exorbitant fees and interfering with the pro- 
ceedings of the Assembly. Yet New Jersey fared somewhat 
better than New York, as, being fully occupied with his 
government of the latter colony. Lord Cornbury for the 
most part governed New Jersey by a deputy. 

7, William Penn. — Of the early Quakers the roost con- 



XIII.] SETTLEMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA. 185 

spicuous was William Penn. In position, ability, and educa- 
tion he stood far above the generality of his sect. His father, 
Admiral Penn, was a distinguished seaman, and stood high 
in the favour of Charles II., by whom he was knighted. His 
son, while at Oxford, is said to have shown symptoms of 
those strict and unusual views in religious matters which 
he afterwards displayed more fully. This temper however 
seemed for a while to have disappeared, and he came back 
from a foreign tour with all the graces and accomplishments 
of a polished gentleman. Soon after this, it became known, 
to the dismay of his friends apd the wonder of the fashionable 
world, that he had joined an obscure sect, headed by an 
illiterate and fanatical cobbler. His father cast him off, and 
the magistrates sent him to prison for attending Quaker 
meetings. After undergoing all these trials with unswerving 
constancy, he was at length reconciled to his father, and, like 
him, enjoyed the favour of the King and the Duke of York. 

8. Settlement of Pennsylvania. — Penn was, as we have- 
seen, a proprietor both in East and West New Jersey, and 
took a leading part in the settlement of those colonies. 
Soon afterwards, he bethought him of founding an exclusively 
Quaker colony, with laws and institutions suited to the pecu- 
liar views of his sect. With this object, in 1680 he got from 
the King a grant of land between Maryland and New York. 
This is said to have been given as a quittance for 16,000/. lent 
by Admiral Penn to the Crown. The territory was called, by 
the wish of the King, Pennsylvania. The grant was opposed 
by the Privy Council, by the Council for Plantations, by the 
proprietors of New York and Maryland, All these obstacles 
however were overcome. At the same time Penn received 
a charter as proprietor, much like that granted to Baltimore. 
It gave him the power of making laws with the advice and 
assent of the freemen. It also gave him the command over 
the forces of the colony, a provision somewhat inconsistent 



136 THE QUAKER COLONIES. [chap. 

with thc43riiiciplcs of the Quakers, who condemned all war as 
sinfuL In that ycai- tliroe ships sailed out with eniisjrants, and 
in the next year Pcnn himself followed. He drew uj) a set of 
rules for the first settlers. The most important of these was that 
no one was to have more than a thousand acres of land lying 
together, unless within three years he should plant a family 
on every thousand acres. To guard the Indians from 
being cheated, all trade with them was to be in open market. 
This year Penn got from the Duke of York a small grant of 
land at the south-east of New York, then called the Territories 
of Pennsylvania, and now forming the State of Delaware. 
This tract of land and Penn's original colony, as long as 
they remained under one government, were generally dis- 
tinguished, the former as the Territories, the latter as the 
Province. The whole country was divided into six courkties, 
three in the Province and three in the Territories. In May, 
1 68:;, Penn set forth the constitution. The Government was 
to consist, as in the other colonics, of a Governor. Council, and 
Assembly. The councillors were not to be appointed by the 
proprietor, but chosen, as they had been in West Jersey, by 
the settlers. They were to be elected for three years, the 
deputies for one. The counties were to send members to the 
Council and to the Assembly on equal terms. At the same 
time Penn published various laws. No conformity in religion 
was to be required from any private person beyond a belief in 
one God. All public officers, however, were to profess them- 
selves Christians. All children were to be taught some trade, 
and the crimin.als in prisons were to be usefully employed. 
No part of Penn's conduct in settling his colony was more 
honourable than his treatment of the Indians. Soon after 
landing he held a contcrence with them, and laid the foun- 
dation of a lasting friendship. In none of the colonies were 
the relations between the two races so uniformly friendly as 
in Pennsylvania. For a long while the highest praise that 



XIII.] TROUBLES IN THE COLONY. 187 

the Indians could give a white man was to liken him to 
Onus, as they called Penn. 

9. Troubles in the Colony.— In May, 1684, Penn was 
forced by stress of business to return to England- Before he 
went he appointed a Governor in his place. Soon after his 
departure dissension arose from various causes. A violent 
dispute had broken out the year before with Mar\-land 
about boundaries. In 1684, the Marj-landers attempted to 
possess themselves by force of some of the disputed lands. 
The question was settled in the next year by the English 
Government. In 1690, a quarrel broke out between the pro- 
vince and the territories. Some of the deputies chosen by 
the territories took upon themselves to usurp the place of the 
whole Assembly, and to carry on business in its name. Other 
disputes followed, and at length Penn thought it best to give 
the territories a separate Government. Penn's friendship for 
James II. naturally prejudiced William and Mary against 
him, and in 1692 he was deprived of his proprietorship on 
the ground that he had suffered the colony to fall into dis- 
order. Fletcher, the Governor of New York, was then 
appointed Governor of Pennsylvania. He soon got into 
disputes with the Assembly. They held that the old con- 
stitution and laws were still in force, while he contended 
that the forfeiture cf the charter had made them void. Th' y 
also refused the help which he required for the protection of 
New York against the Indians. In 1694, Penn so far re- 
covered favour with the Court as to be restored to his 
proprietorship. Two years later the Assembly drew up a 
fresh form of government, to which Penn assented. The 
principal changes were that the number of councillors and 
deputies was reduced by one-third, and that the Assembly 
was empowered to meet of its own free-will, without being 
summoned by the Governor, In 1699, Penn again went out, 
but in less than two years he was called back by a report 



i88 THE QUAKER COLONIES. [chap. 

that the proprietary governments were in danger of being 
aboHshed, and he never revisited the colony. Dining his 
stay disputes again broke out between the Province and the 
Territories, which had been reunited under Fletcher. The 
deputies from the Territories, not being able to carry some 
measures for the good of their own country, left the Assembly 
altogether. Penn endeavoured to mediate, but without suc- 
cess, and after his departure the feud grew worse. In 1701, 
Penn granted a fresh charter, one of the clauses in which 
allowed the Territories, if they chose, to have a separate 
legislature. This, in 1703, they did, and came to be 
■regarded as a colony by themselves, under the name of 
Delaware, though the Governor of Pennsylvania ruled 
Delaware also. When the Revolution came, Delaware 
was conceded equal rights by all the other colonies. 
Besides this dispute other dissensions arose. Penn does 
not seem to have been fortunate in his choice of a Gov- 
ernor. Evans, who became Governor i\ 1704 and his 
successor, Gookin, both quarrelled with the Assembly. In 
1 710, Penn pathetically complained, in a letter which he 
■wrote to the colonists, that he could not "but think it hard 
measure that, while that has proved a land of freedom and 
flourishing, it should become to me, by whose means it was 
principally made a country, the cause of grief, trouble, and 
poverty." Being moreover embarrassed in his private affairs, 
in 17 12 Penn proposed to sell his right as proprietor to the 
Crown. Just before the sale could be completed, he was 
seized with apoplexy, and, for the remaining six years of his 
life, he was incapable of doing any business. Thus the 
transfer was never made, and the proprietorship was handed 
down to Penn's descendants. They took little interest in the 
colony. They caused more than one dispute by putting 
forward a claim to hold their lands free from taxation, a 
demand which was always resisted by the Assembly. 



XIV.] MOTIVES FOR SETTLEMENT. 189 

JO. General Condition. — None of the colonies, except per- 
haps New York, was better off for natural advantages than 
Pennsylvania. The climate was a mean between that of 
New England and the southern colonies. Timber was plen- 
tiful, the soil was fertile, and the rivers offered easy means 
of carriage. Philadelphia, the capital, was the best laid out 
and handsomest town in the colonies. The inhabitants were 
of various races and religions. Besides the Quakers, who for 
a long time formed the greater part of the population, there 
were Swedes, Germans, and Welsh. As in New England, 
there seem to have been few very rich men or great landed 
proprietors. In this, and in the general mode of life among- 
the settlers, Pennsylvania resembled New York and the 
New England colonies. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

THE SETTLEMENT OF GEORGIA AND THE SPANISH WAR. 

Motives for settUtnent (l)—Jirst settlement (2) — German and Scotch 
emigrants (3) — dispute between Oglethorpe and the settlers (4) 
dealings with the neighbouring Spanish colonists (5) — alliance 
with the Indians (6) — 7var with Spain (7) — invasion of Georgia 
(8) — Oglethorpe's departure (9) — Georgia becotiies a royal co- 
lony (10). 

I. Motives for Settlement — Virginia and Georgia, the 
first and last of the English colonies in Ameria, resemble 
one another in their origin. All the settlements that came 
between were either founded, like Maryland and Carolina, 
for the profit of the proprietors, or like Pennsylvania and the 



igo GEORGIA AND THE SPANISH WAR. [chap. 

New England colonies, as a refuge for a religious sect. Vir- 
ginia and Georgia alone were established as homes for the 
poor and needy. In one point however they differed. Vir- 
ginia was colonized by a company of merchants, who looked 
to their own gain as well as to the good of the settlers. The 
founders of Georgia were benevolent men, who did not aim 
at any profit to themselves, but only at founding a home for 
those who had no means of liveHhood in England. Georgia 
may also be likened to a still earlier class of settlements, 
those planned by Gilbert and Raleigh. For it was meant to 
serve, and it did serve, as a military outpost to guard the older 
colonics, especially South Carolina, against Spanish invasion. 
About 1730, some benevolent persons were struck by the evil 
state of English prisons. At that time men could be, and 
commonly were, imprisoned for debt. The prisons in which 
they were confined were shamefully managed. They were dens 
of filth, and no heed was given to the health of the prison- 
ers. About that time also many wild and foolish schemes 
of speculation had been set on foot, and had led to the ruin 
of many. Thus the debtors' prisons were unusually full, and 
their condition was worse than ever. One of the first to call 
attention to this was James Oglethorpe, a man of high birth 
and good education, an officer in the army, and a member of 
Parliament. From the outset of his public career, he de- 
voted himself to liettcring the lot of the wretched and help- 
less, and was described by Pope as — 

" Urged by strong benevolence of soul." 

By the account which he gave of the evil state of prisons, he 
got a committee of the House of Commons appointed, with 
himself as chairman, to inquire into the matter. He was 
not content with hghtening the sufterings of those unhappy 
debtors. He bethought him of some means whereby those 
who could find no livelihood in England could be put in the 



XIV.] MOTIVES FOR SETTLEMENT. 191 

way of earning their bread, and so be saved from debt. To 
foiind a colony specially fitted for such a class seemed the 
readiest cure for the evil. Moreover Oglethorpe, being a 
good soldier and a patriotic man, thought that the same 
scheme might be turned to account as a check on the 
Spaniards, who, as we have seen, threatened the southern 
counties of Carohna. In 1732, Oglethorpe and other bene- 
volent men formed a company to carry out this plan. They 
obtained a charter and a grant of all the land between the 
rivers Savannah and Alatamaha, to form a province called 
Georgia, in honour of the King. Twenty-one trustees were 
appointed, with full power to manage the affairs of the 
colony. At first they were to appoint the Governor and 
other officers. After four years these appointments were to 
be made by the Crown. Laws were to be made by the com- 
pany and approved of by the Privy Council. The settlers 
themselves were to have no share in the government. Lest 
the company should try to make profit out of their scheme, no 
member of it was to hold any paid office in the colony. All 
the arrangements kept in view the two main ends, to make 
Georgia both a fit settlement for needy men working with 
their own hands and a strong outpost against the Spaniards. 
Most of the settlers were to be poor people, released debtors 
and bankrupt tradesmen, and those who, having large fami- 
lies, were in receipt of parish relief. These were to be sent 
out at the expense of the company. But, beside these, the 
company were ready to receive settlers who might choose 
to go out at their own expense. Still they wished to make it 
specially a poor man's settlement. With this view they 
prohibited slavery, as likely to interfere with free labour and 
to give rich men an advantage. Besides, a revolt of the 
slaves would have been specially dangerous with neighbours 
like the Spaniards on the frontier. No one was to hold 
more than five hundred acres of land, and, in order to keep 



192 GEORGIA AND THE SPANISH WAR. [chap. 

up the number of proprietors, no land was allowed to be sold, 
and, if a man left no son, his lot was to become the property 
of the company. The object of this rule was to ensure a 
sufficient number of men fit for service in war. For the 
same reason all the settlers were to be drilled as soldiers. 
As some of the settlers were likely to be of unsteady habits, 
no rum was to be imported. The company hoped to have 
among their settlers some German Protestants, many of 
whom had lately been driven from their homes by fierce 
persecution, and with this view a clause was inserted in the 
charter providing that all foreigners who settled in Georgia 
should have the same rights as English citizens. So too 
men of all religions, except Roman Catholics, were to enjoy 
equal rights. To guard against any dispute with its English 
neighbours, the colony was set free by the Crown from any 
right which Carolina might have claimed over the land south 
of the .Savannah. 

2. First Settlement. — Oglethorpe was appointed Governor 
of the colony, witli power to choose a site for a settlement, 
and to manage all public affairs. On the i6th of November, 
1732, he sailed from Gravesend with a hundred and twenty 
emigrants. On the 13th of January they landed in Carolina, 
where they were kindly received. Oglethorpe went up the 
river Savannah to select a place for a settlement. He chose 
a piece of high ground, round which the river flowed in the 
shape of a horse-shoe. It was about ten miles from the sea, 
and commanded a view of the river to its mouth. This was 
an advantage, as there was always a danger of the settlement 
being attacked by the Spaniards from the sea. The town 
was to be called Savannah, after the river. At the same time 
Oglethorpe made an alliance with the chief of the Creeks, the 
most powerful Indian nation in that quarter. On the ist of 
February the colonists arrived at Savannah. The people of 
Carolina assisted them with supplies of food. In May Ogle- 



XIV.] OGLETHORPE AND THE SETTLERS. 193 

.thorpe held a conference with the Creeks. They promised 
not to meddle with the Enghsh settlers, and to let them 
occupy any land that they did not need for themselves. 
Presents were then exchanged ; the Indians gave buckskins ; 
Oglethorpe, guns, ammunition, cloth, and spirits. 

3. German and Scotch Emigrants. — Next year a band of 
German emigrants came over. They had been driven from 
Salzburg by a persecuting archbishop. Oglethorpe gave 
them their choice of land, and they settled about twenty miles 
north of Savannah. They were well recived both by English 
and Indians, and soon formed a prosperous settlement. In 
April, 1734, Oglethorpe returned to England, taking with 
him some of the Creek chiefs. The trustees now began to 
learn that men who had failed in England were not very likely 
to succeed in a colony. Accordingly they sent out some more 
German Protestants and a number of Scotch Highlanders. 
The latter, from their hardihood and warlike habits, were 
specially fitted for a colony which was likely to have to 
defend itself by arms. On his return to Georgia, Oglethorpe 
set to work to colonise the southern frontier. He planted a 
body of emigrants on an island at the mouth of the Alata- 
maha, and called the settlement Frederica. This was in- 
tended to guard the colony against an attack from the south. 
The Highlanders were posted on the river sixteen miles 
inland. Another settlement called Augusta was founded two 
hundred and thirty miles up the river Savannah to guard 
the western frontier. Augusta and Frederica were both 
fortified, and other forts were erected near the mouth of 
the Alatamaha. 

4. Dispute between Oglethorpe and the Settlers. — In the 
meantime disputes had arisen at Savannah. Some of the 
settlers drew up a statement of their grievances, and laid it 
before the trustees. Their chief complaints were that Causton, 
whom Oglethorpe had left in charge of afiairs, was tyrannical 

o 



154 GEORGIA AND TIJE SPAXISII WAR. [chai\ 

and unjust ; that the colony could not thrive without the use 
of negroes ; that the prohibition of rum was injurious ; that 
many of the settlers could not earn a livelihood ; and that 
the state of the colony was so wretched that its inhabitants 
seized every opportunity of fleeing to Carolina. Some of 
these complaints seem to have been well founded. Caus- 
ton's misconduct was so clear that he was removed from his 
office by Oglethorpe. The demand for rum was supported 
by the statements that the water of the country was too 
unwholesome to be drunk by itself; that, as rum was the 
chief product of the West Indies, the prohibition stopped the 
trade with those islands, and that thus the Georgia settlers 
lost the best market for their goods. As for the negroes, the 
only respectable settlers, the Highlanders and the Germans, 
protested that slaves would be both needless and dangerous. 
Still there is no doubt that the other emigrants were less fitted 
for hard work, and the sight of the Carolina settlers living on 
the proceeds of slave labour may naturally have made them 
wish for the same relief. It was also true that many of the 
settlers had fled, but generally because Oglethorpe had de- 
prived some of the most idle and worthless of their share of 
food from the public stores. Still, if the grievances had been 
presented in a temperate and respectful way, they might 
have been considered, but those who took the chief part in 
complaining were lazy and dissolute, and mixed up their 
statements with violent and unjust abuse of Oglethorpe. 
Thus the trustees took little or no notice of them. 

5. Dealings with the neighbouring Spanish Colonists — 
Oglethorpe soon had other troubles on his hands. Early in 
1736, he sent an embassy to confer Avith the Spaniards about 
til ■ boundaries of the colony, which were still unsettled. As 
the embassy did not return for some time, Oglethorpe became 
uneasy, and sailed to the south to inquire after them. His 
Indian allies wished to go with him, but he would only take 



XIV,] DEALINGS WITH SPANISH COLONISTS. 195 

a small number, lest they should fall out with the Spaniards. 
An isl« nd which they touched at was named by the Indians 
Cumberland, in honour of the Duke of Cumberland, who 
had shown their chiefs much kindness when they were in 
England. Here, and at another island further south, Ogle- 
thorpe set up forts, calling them Forts St. Andrew and St. 
George. These places were not included in the territory of 
Georgia, and were occupied by Oglethorpe as military out- 
posts against the Spaniards. In a few days Oglethorpe met 
the embassy returning with civil messages from the Spaniards. 
He thereupon went back to Savannah. In spite of this show 
of friendship, Oglethorpe soon had private information that 
the Spaniards were plotting against his colony. He feared 
that his Indian friends might attack the Spaniards, and thus 
give them a pretext for making war on Georgia. He took 
steps to prevent this by keeping a boat constantly on guard 
upon the Alatahama, to prevent, if possible, any Indian from 
crossing. He then sent an embassy to the Spaniards, tatell 
them what he had done. At the same time he sent to Carolina 
for help both by sea and land, and fortified and victualled 
Frederica. For some time nothing was heard of the embassy. 
Alarmed at this, Oglethorpe sailed to the south. On reaching 
the frontier, he learnt that the Spaniards were advancing. 
They believed, as he afterwards found, that all the forces of 
the colony were at Frederica, and accordingly they were 
about to attack Fort St. George. Oglethorpe however fired 
his guns in such a way as to make the Spaniards suppose 
that a ship and a battery on land were saluting one another. 
Thus he tricked the Spaniards into the belief that fresh 
lorccs had come up, and they retreated in confusion. A 
few days later they sent an embassy which met Oglethorpe 
near Frederica. Their meeting was friendly. The Spaniards 
promised to make amends for some wrongs that they had 
done the Indians, and Oglethorpe at the same ti:ne agreed 

2 



igS GEORGIA AND THE SPANISH WAR. [chap. 

to withdraw his soldiers from Fort St. George. This he did, 
and stationed them instead on an island somewhat further 
north, which he named Amelia Island. 

6. Alliance with the Indians. — Things now were quiet 
enough for Oglethorpe to return to England. While he was 
there the Spanish Ambassador presented a memorial to the 
English Government, requesting that no more troops should 
be sent to Georgia, and that Oglethorpe should not be allowed 
to return thither. This request was of course disregarded, 
and in September, 1738, Oglethorpe went back, having raised 
a regiment in England for the defence of the colony. In 
October a mutiny broke out among his troops, caused, it was 
thought, by the intrigues of the Sp9.niards ; but it was easily 
quelled. In the next summer Oglethorpe undertook a long 
and difficult journey into the Indian country, to see some of 
the chiefs and stop negotiations which he heard were going 
forward between the Indians and the Spaniards. For two 
hundred miles he saw neither house nor human being. 
When he reached the Indian settlements, the fame of his 
goodness and his friendship for the Indians had gone before 
him, and he was received with all kindness and hospitality. 
The Indians complained of wrongs done them by some 
traders from Carolina. Oglethorpe promised to make amends 
for these, and a treaty was arranged. 

7. War with Spain. — In this autumn the war between 
England and Spain, which had long seemed at hand, broke 
out. The Spaniards, like the English, forbade all foreign 
vessels to trade with their colonies. This law was broken 
by English merchants, and, in consequence, the Spanish 
guardships frequently stopped and searched our vessels. 
Many stories were afloat, some probably true, others certainly 
exaggerated, if not false, of the cruelties inflicted by Spanish 
officials on English sailors. One man in particular, named 
Jenkins, excited great public indignation by declaring that 



XIV.] JFA/i WITH SPAIN. 197 

the Spaniards had cut off his ears. Besides this, the Spanish 
Government demanded that the colony in Georgia should be 
removed, as it threatened the frontier of Florida. Walpole, 
then at the head of the ministry, did not think there was ground 
enough for war, but it was clear that both Parliament and the 
nation were against him, and that he would have to declare war 
or to resign. He loved the peace of his country well, but he 
loved his own power better, and yielded. In October, 1739, war 
was declared, and Oglethorpe received orders to annoy Florida. 
The first blow was struck by the Spaniards. In December 
they fell upon the force at Amelia Island, but retreated after 
killing two Highlanders. Oglethorpe, though ill supplied 
with arms and ammunition, thought that his best policy was 
to act on the offensive, and march boldly on St. Augustine, 
the chief Spanish fort. He could depend on the Indians, and 
many of the settlers were able and ready for service. His 
first step was to send out a small force, which captured a 
Spanish outpost called Picolata. It was important to hasten 
proceedings, as the English navy was now blockading Cuba, 
the chief Spanish island in the West Indies, and thus the 
Spaniards in Florida were less likely to receive any help. 
Unluckily, the Government of Carolina were slow in sending 
Oglethorpe the help that he asked for. In May he deter- 
mined to set forth without it, and with his own regiment, 
numbering four hundred, some of the Georgia Militia, and a 
body of Indians, he marched into the Spanish territory. At 
first things went well with him. He captured three small 
forts, and met with no serious opposition till he reached St. 
Augustine. This was a strongly fortified place, and well 
furnished with artillery. The number of men in it was two 
thousand, about the same as the whole English land force. 
Oglethorpe resolved on a joint attack by sea and land. But 
the commodore commanding the English ships found that 
the enemy had effectually secured their harbour, so that plan 



I'jS GEORGIA AND THE SPAM^H WAR. [chap, 

was abandoned. Oglethorpe then attempted to bombard 
the place, but without success. The Spaniards then made a 
sortie, and fell upon a small force that Oglethorpe had left in 
one of the captured forts. If Oglethorpe's orders had been 
obeyed, his troops would have avoided an engagement, but 
they despised the enemy, they rashly allowed themselves to be 
surrounded, and were nearly all killed or taken. About the 
same time Oglethorpe lost some of his Indian allies. One 
of them thought to please him by bringing him the head of a 
Spaniard. Oglethorpe indignantly ordered him out of his 
sight. The Indians took offence at this, and many of them 
departed. It was soon seen that the English fleet could not 
keep the Spaniards from bringing in supplies from the sea, 
and that any attempt at a blockade would be useless. Ogle- 
thorpe then resolved to try his first plan of an assault, and 
made all preparations. But before the time came the fleet 
withdrew, driven away, as their commanders said, by fear of 
hurricanes. The Carolina troops, who had now come up, 
were but httle help, and some of them, even officers, deserted. 
Many of Oglethorpe's own men were sick. It was soon clear 
that the attack must be abandoned, and in June Oglethorpe 
retreated. Though he had failed in his main object, yet his 
march probably kept the Spaniards in check, and withheld 
them for some time from any active operations against 
Georgia or Carolina. 

8. Invasion of Georgia.— In the autumn of 1740, England 
sent out one of the finest fleets that she had ever put on the 
sea, to act against the Spaniards in the West Indies. There 
were thirty ships of the line and eighty-five other vessels, 
with fifteen thousand seamen and a land force of twelve 
thousand soldiers on board. Unluckily, Admiral Vernon, 
who commanded the fleet, and General Wentworth, who 
commanded the land force, could not agree, and nothing was 
done. In the following July an attack was made on Cuba, 



XIV.] I.VFASIOA'- OF GEORGIA. igq 

but it was an utter failure, and the Spaniards were left free 
to employ all their forces against the English settlements. 
Accordingly, early in 1742 they made ready for an invasion. 
The wisdom of Oglethorpe's arrangements was now seen. 
The woods, held as they were by Indians friendly to the 
English, were a sufficient guard on the land side. Thus the 
Spaniards could make their attack only from the sea. As 
they could not safely leave a strong place like Frederica in 
their rear, it was necessary as a first step to take it, and thus 
it became the key of the country. St. Simon's, the island on 
which Frederica stood, was about twelve miles long and from 
two to five miles broad. Frederica was on the west side 
facing the mainland, and the only approach to it was a road 
running for two miles between a forest and a marsh, and so 
narrow that only two men could go abreast. On every other 
side Frederica was protected by thick woods. On the 5th of 
July the Spaniards began by attacking St. Simon's, a fort on 
the east side of the island. They had a fleet of thirty-six ships, 
but were beaten off by the batteries, after an engagement 
which lasted four hours. Oglethorpe however, doubting 
whether St. Simon's^could be defended, destroyed it, lest it 
should fall into the enemy's hands, and collected his whole 
force in Frederica. Two days later his Indian scouts brought 
news that the Spaniards weie two miles from the town. 
Oglethorpe at once marched out at the head of his light 
troops, fell upon the Spanish vanguard and routed them, 
taking two prisoners with his own hand. He pursued the 
Spaniards for about a mile, and then halted till his regular 
troops had come up. These he posted in the woods, and 
returned to Frederica to prepare for defence. The Spaniards 
marched forward and halted within a hundred yards of the 
main ambush, who opened a heavy fire upon them. In spite 
01 the disgraceful flight of the larger part of the English 
force, the Spaniards were utterly deteated with a loss of three 



200 GEORGIA AND THE SPANISH WAR. [chap. 

hundred, besides those who fled to the woods and were there 
killed by the Indians. The Spaniards, having failed by land, 
tried an attack by sea, but were beaten off by the guns of the 
fort. Nevertheless the English were far from safe. Their 
stock of food was scanty, and if this and the smallness of 
their force became known, the enomy were almost sure to 
return to the attack. The English therefore were much 
alarmed when they found that a Frenchman who had joined 
them with some volunteers had fled to the Spaniards In 
this strait Oglethorpe bribed a Spanish prisoner to take a 
letter professedly to the Frenchman, but really meant to fall 
into the hands of the Spanish commander. This letter told 
the Frenchman that he was to be rewarded for misleading 
the Spaniards as to the English force, and so tempting them 
to rush into destruction. The Spaniards fell into the trap, 
and believed that the Frenchman was really a friend to the 
English. Oglethorpe had also said in his letter, to alarm the 
Spaniards, that he expected some ships in a day or two. 
Just at this time, by good fortune, some English ships ap- 
peared in the distance. This confirmed the Spaniards in 
their distrust, and they at once embarked hastily, leaving their 
fire-arms and ammunition behind them. On their wnv back 
they attacked some of the English forts, but were be ten off, 
and then retreated into their own territories. On the i4ih of 
July a public thanksgiving was celebrated in Georgia for 
the deliverance of the colony. After their defeat no further 
attempt was made by the Spaniards to molest the English 
settlements. 

9. Oglethorpe's Departure — Next year Oglethorpe sailed 
to England, and never again visited the colony that he had 
founded and saved. But his memory was long held in honour 
there, and a city and county were called after him, and kept 
alive his name. Of all the founders of American colonies, 
from Raleigh onwards, none deserve such high honour as 



XIV.] GEORGIA BECOMES A ROYAL COLONY. 201 

Oglethorpe. Penn laboured unsparingly and wisely, but it 
was for a sect to which he belonged, and for a colony which 
bore his name. Winthrop and his friends left their homes 
and gave up all their hopes of prosperity and greatness in 
England, but it was to become the rulers of a new State and 
to win a refuge from tyranny for themselves and their 
children. Oglethorpe, urged by a yet nobler and more un- 
selfish spirit, overcame the temptations of riches and high 
birth, cast behind him the pleasures of the world and forsook 
the society of friends, to spend the best years of his life in 
toil and hardship, with no hope of earthly I'eward beyond the 
fickle gratitude of those whom he served. 

10. Georgia becomes a Royal Colony. — After Oglethorpe's 
departure, the trustees placed the government in the hands 
of a President and four assistants. They were to hold four 
courts a year, to manage the affairs of the colony and to try 
law-suits, but they might not spend money without the consen-. 
of the trustees. It was soon found that some of the restraints 
placed on the settlers were injurious to the colony. In the 
first seven years Parliament granted 94,000/. towards the 
advancement of the settlement, and fifteen hundred emigrants 
were sent out from England, but not more than half of these 
stayed in Georgia. The trustees thought that the restriction 
on the sale of land had led many of the settlers to leave the 
colony, and accordingly they removed it. Still the colony 
did not thrive. Nearly all the inhabitants, except the Germans 
and the Highlanders, were idle and discontented. In 1752 
the trustees, dissatisfied with the result, gave up their charter 
to the crown. A government was established, modelled on 
that of South Carolina. The prohibition of slavery and of 
the importation of rum was done away with, and Georgia 
became in every respect like the other southern colonies. 



202 THE CONQUEST OE CANADA. [chap 

CHAPTER XV. 

THE CONQUEST OF CANADA AND OF THE OHIO VALLEY. 

The French in Louisiana (l) — Washingto7i in the Ohio Valley (2) — 
the Albany conference (3) — Braddock's defeat (4) — Washington in 
command [f,]— conquest of Southern Acadia ^6) — banishment oj 
the Acadims (7) — attack on Canada {%)- conquest oJ the Ohij 
Valley (9) — the conquest of Canada (ic) — the Cherokee -war (11) 
the peace of Paris (i2)— Eontiac's zvar (13). 

I. The French in Louisiana. — Besides Canada, the French 
liad another colony in North America. This was Louisiana, 
a fertile tract of land at the mouth of the Mississippi. In 
1673, Marquette, a Jesuit missionary, starting from Canada, 
had penetrated into the countries now forming the States 
of Wisconsin and Iowa, and had journeyed some way down 
the Mississippi. A few years later. La Salle, a French 
fur-trader, descended the Mississippi to the sea. In 1684 
he persuaded the French government to found a colony 
at the mouth of the river. He then explored the whole 
valley of the Mississippi ; but, before he could bring back 
the report of his discoveries, he was murdered by two of 
his own followers. The position of this southern French 
colony threatened the English settlements with not a little 
danger. If once the French could connect Canada and 
Louisiana by a continuous range of forts along the valleys 
of the Ohio and the Mississippi, they would completely sur- 
round the English settlements. They would form, as it has 
been described, a bow, of which the English colonies were 
the string. Even if these did not annoy the English settler.'^, 
they would withhold them from spreading towards the west. 
William III, saw the danger of this, and planned a scheme 



NV.] WASHINGTON IN THE OHIO VAILEY. 203 

for.placing a number of French Protestants on the Missis- 
sippi as a check on the French settlements there. This 
however came to nothing. Like Canada, Louisiana was, in 
its early years, unprosperou* But about 173° it began to 
flourish, and in a few years it contained seven thousand 
inhabitants. Measured by actual numbers, the French 
colonies seemed no match for the EngUsh. In 1740 the 
former contained only fifty-two thousand Europeans, the 
latter eight hundred thousand. But their alliance with the 
Indians, and the strength of their position, made the French 
dangerous. Moreover they had the advantage of being all 
under a single governor. 

2. Washington in the Ohio Valley — The two French 
colonies were separated by the valleys of the Ohio and 
the Mississippi. Between the Ohio and Virginia lay dense 
forests and a range of mountains, the Alleghanies, rising 
at some points to four thousand feet, and in few places 
to less than three thousand. The French and English 
both claimed this territory, the former on the strength 
of Marquette's and La Salle's discoveries, the latter by a 
treaty made with the Mohawks in 1744. It seemed doubtful 
however whether the lands in question really belonged to 
the Mohawks, and also whether the treaty gave the English 
more than the east side of the river. But in a dispute of such 
importance between two nations who had been lately at war, 
neither side was likely to be very scrupulous as to the grounds 
of its claims. Before 1749 "o regular settlements had been 
formed by the English beyond the Alleghanies, and the moun- 
tains had only been crossed by traders. But in that year a 
small body of rich men in England,.called the Ohio Company, 
obtained from the king a grant of six hundred thousand acres 
of land in the Ohio valley. This, as probably was expected, 
soon brought the dispute to an issue. In 1752 the French 
governor proceeded to connect Canada and Louisiana by a 



204 ^y/i? CONQUEST OF CANADA. [chap. 

line of forts. Thereupon Dinwiddle, the governor of Vir- 
ginia, sent a commissioner to warn the French commander 
that he was trespassing, and to find out the real state of 
affairs there. For this task iTe chose George Washington. 
He was twenty-one years old, of good family, brought up as 
a land-surveyor. That he stood high in the governor's 
esteem is shown by his holding a commission as major in 
the Virginia- militia, and being chosen, in spite of his youth, 
for this difficult service. After a wearisome journey through 
the wilderness, Washington reached the spot where the 
Alleghany and Mononhangela meet to form the Ohio. 
These rivers here run in a westerly direction. About ten 
miles further up, the Mononhangela is joined by another 
river of some size, the Youghiogheny. Besides this, two 
smaller streams rise in the land between the Alleghany and 
the Mononhangela, and fall one into each river. Thus the 
fork of land between the two rivers was strongly guarded 
on every side by water. Its position was in other ways 
suitable for a fort. Washington was well received by the 
Indians, who had already met the French. The French 
they regarded as trespassers, while they do not seem to 
have suspected the English of being anything more than 
traders. The French fort lay a hundred and twenty miles 
beyond the meeting of the streams. On Washington's 
arrival the French commander received him with great civi- 
lity, but he professed to have no power to make terms, and said 
that any application must be made to the governor of Canada ; 
he himself was only acting under orders, and could not 
withdraw. On his return Dinwiddie at once called together 
the Assembly and laid the matter before them. Some of 
them questioned the English claim to the lands, but at length 
they voted 10,000/. for the encouragement and protection of 
the settlers in the west. At the same time Dinwiddie wrote 
to the governors of the other colonies to ask for help. North 



XV.] JVASIJIA'GTON IN THE OHIO VALLEY. 205 

Carolina alone answered to the call, and voted 12,000/. There 
were now in the colonies three classes of soldiers. I. There 
were the militia of each colony. II. There were the colonial 
regular troops, raised by each colony at its own expense. 
These, like the militia, were commanded by officers appointed 
by the governor of the colony. III. There were the king's 
Americans ; regiments raised in the colonies, but commanded 
by officers commissioned by the king. These -last were de- 
pendent solely on the crown, and had no connexion with 
any colony in particular. The crown also had the right of 
appointing superior officers, M'hose command extended over 
the tirst and second, as well as over the third class. It does 
not seem to have been clearly settled whether the colonial 
officers took equal rank with the king's officers, and this ques- 
tion gave rise to many disputes and to much inconvenience. 
The Virginia force consisted, beside the militia, of six com- 
panies of a hundred men each, of which Washington was 
lieutenant-colonel. To quicken their zeal and to get recruits, 
Dinwiddie promised a grant of two hundred thousand acres 
of land on the Ohio, to be divided among the troops, and to 
be free of all rent for fifteen years. This also was to serve 
as a standing military outpost. In April, Washington set 
out towards the Ohio, with three companies. He sent a 
small party in advance, who began to build a fort at the 
meeting ot the rivers. The French surrounded this fort, 
compelled the occupants to retire, and took possession oi the 
place, which they strengthened and called Fort Duquesne. 
News of this reached Washington when he was about ninety 
miles oft". The French force was believed to be much stronger 
than his ; nevertheless he decided to push on and take up 
a position on the banks of the Mononhangela. Soon after 
he learned Irom the Indians that a small torce was marching 
towards him. On May 27th he set off with forty soldiers 
and some Indians, and the next day he met the enemy. It is 



2o6 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. [chap. 

uncertain which side began the engagement. After a short 
skirmish, the French force, which numbered about tifty, was 
defeated ; the commander, Jumonville, and ten others were 
killed, and twenty-two captured. The French have repre- 
sented this as a treacherous onslaught made on men who had 
come on a peaceful embassy. Washington, on the other 
hand, declared that the French evidently approached with 
hostile intentions. The French also represented that Jumon- 
ville was murdered during a conference. This was un- 
doubtedly false, and throws discredit on their whole story. 
After the fight, Washington, finding that the whole French 
force would be upon him, entrenched himself at a spot called 
Great Meadowi, some fifty miles from Fort Duquesne. On 
the 2nd of July he was attacked by a force of about seven 
hundred men. The engagement lasted from four in the 
morning till eight at night. The French then demanded a 
parley. Washington, finding that he could not hold his 
ground, surrendered the fort, on condition that he might 
carry off all his effects except his artillery. He also pro- 
mised not to occupy that place, or any other beyond the 
Alleghany Mountains, for a year. In spite of his retreat, 
Washington's conduct was highly approved of, and he and 
his officers received a vote of thanks from the Virginian 
assembly. Dinwiddle was for sending out at once another 
and a larger expedition ; but it was soon clear that, before 
anything effective could be done, snow and frost would 
make the mountains impassable. 

3. The Albany Conference. — During this same summer, 
by the recommendation of the English government, deputies 
from the different colonies met at Albany, to discuss a gene- 
ral scheme of defence. Representatives attended from New 
Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New 
York, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. At the suggestion of 
Shirley, the governor of Massachusetts, they discussed a 



XV. ] BRADD O CIC S DEFEA T. 207 

scheme for an union of all the colonies. The author of this 
scheme was Benjamin Franklin, a native of Boston, who had 
emigrated in his youth to Pennsylvania. He was by trade a 
printer. By his energy and ability he had become one of the 
most influential men in his own colony. In Philadelphia he 
had already introduced many useful improvements, an acad- 
emy, a public library, a fire brigade, and a board for paving 
and cleaning the streets. He now proposed that the colonies 
should apply to Parliament for an Act uniting them all undei 
one government. The separate colonial governments were 
to remain as before, but there was to be one federal govern- 
ment over them all. There was to be a president appointed 
by the king, and a board of representatives elected by the 
people of each colony. The number of representatives from 
each colony was to be proportionate to its contribution to 
the general treasury. But the scheme was unpopular both 
in England and in the colonies. The English government 
feared that it would make the colonies too strong, while the 
Americans disliked itas increasing the authority of the crown 
and interfering with the different colonial assemblies. Thus 
the scheme fell to the ground. At the same time Franklin 
proposed that two fresh colonies should be formed in the 
disputed territory. This too came to nodring. 

4. Braddock's Defeat. — In 1755 a force under the com- 
mand of General Braddock was sent out from England to 
])rotect the American frontier. The Virginia regiment had 
been broken up into six separate companies. By this change 
Washington had been reduced from the rank ol lieutenant- 
colonel to that of a captain. Disgusted at this, he had 
resigned his commission. He was now asked to serve as a 
volunteer with Braddock, and gladly accepted the offer. At 
the outset of the campaign Braddock was hindered by the 
misconduct of the contractors, who lailed to supply the wag- 
gons that they had promised. This difficulty was overcome 



2oS THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. [chap. 

by the activity and ability of Franklin. On the 9th of July, 
1755, Braddock, with twelve hundred picked men, forded the 
Mononhangela and entered the valley of the Ohio. Franklin 
had reminded him of the danger of a march in the woods, 
and the fear of ambuscades, but Braddock scorned the warn- 
ing, as coming from a colonist and a civilian. Just after the 
whole force had crossed the Mononhangela, they heard a 
quick and heavy fire in their front. The two foremost de- 
tachrnents fell back, and the whole force was in confusion. 
The officers, conspicuous on horseback, were picked off by 
riflemen. Braddock had five horses killed under him, and 
was at length mortally wounded. The officers behaved with 
great courage, and strove to rally their troops, but in vain. 
The men lost all sense of discipline, fired so wildly that they 
did more harm to their own side than to the enemy, and then 
fled, leaving their artillery, provisions, and baggage. The 
colonial troops alone behaved well ; Washington himself had 
two horses shot under him, and four bullets through his coat, 
and yet was unhurt. The total loss in killed and wounded was 
over seven hundred, while that of the enemy did not amount 
to one hundred. Braddock died two days afterwards, and 
was buried secretly, lest his body should be insulted by the 
Indians. 

5. Washington in Command. — In the next summer Wasli- 
ington was appointed colonel of the Virginia forces, including 
the militia and the colonial regulars. Few commanders have 
ever had a harder task set before thenn. The frontier was 
attacked by bands of Indians, urged on by the French. 
Living, as the Virginians did, each on his own separate plan- 
tation, such attacks were specially dangerous. Washington 
wished them to collect together in small settlements, but his 
advice does not seem to have been followed. The rich valley 
of the Shenandoah, the furthest land on which the English 
colonists had settled, seemed likely to be wholly deserted. 



XV.] CONQUEST OF SOUTHERN ACADIA. 209 

Meanwhile the defences of the frontier were in a state of 
utter weakness and confusion. Washington was ill supplied 
with stores and men. Desertions became so frequent that 
at one time nearly one-half of the militia was employed in 
capturing the other half. No one clearly knew what weie 
the limits of Washington's power, or how far he had any 
authority over the forces sent out from other colonies. The 
neighbouring governments too were backward in sending 
help. The governors were for the most part zealous, but 
the Assemblies were so jealous of anything like arbitrary 
power that they were more anxious to restrain their gover- 
nors than to further the common cause. In Pennsylvania, 
which with Virginia was in the greatest danger, the Governor 
and Assembly could not agree about taxation. The Assembly 
were willing to grant a supply : but the Governor, in obedience 
to the proprietors, insisted that the proprietary lands should 
be free from taxation. To this the Assembly naturally ob- 
jected, and no money could be raised. Moreover each colony 
cared only for the defence of its own frontier. Even among 
the Virginians themselves this feeling prevailed, and Wash- 
ington was more than once hindered by the anxiety of his 
officers to guard their own plantations. 

6. Conquest of Southern Acadia. — On the northern fron- 
tier matters were not much better. In 1755 three expeditions 
were prepared against Canada. The first was planned alto- 
gether by the Massachusetts Government. Its object was to 
recover the country between the peninsula of Acadia and the 
St. Lawrence, which the English claimed under the treaty of 
Aix-la-Chapelle, and which now is called New Brunswick. 
For this a force of seven hundred men was sent out in May. 
The French forts were weakly defended, and by June the 
New Englanders found themselves masters of the whole 
territory south of the St. Lawrence. 

7, Banishment of the Acadians. — When Acadia was given 

P 



2IO THE CONQUEST OF CANADA, [chai-. 

up to the English in 17 12, the French inhabitants took the 
oath of allegiance to the English Government. At the same 
time they asked not to be forced in time of war to take up 
arms against the French. No formal agreement was made, 
but it seems to have been understood that they would be 
allowed to stand neutral. At the capture of Fort Beaujeu, 
the chief French fortress taken by the New Englanders, 
three hundred Acadians were found among the garrison. The 
Acadians themselves declared that they had been impressed 
against their will by the French commander. The English 
Government however was afraid to leave a people of doubt- 
ful loyalty in a place of such importance, and resolved to 
banish them in a body. This may have been necessary, but 
it was undoubtedly carried out with needless harshness. At 
five days' notice more than ten thousand persons were 
banished from their homes. Nothing was done by the 
English in authority to lighten this blow, much to increase 
it. Families were torn asunder, and a prosperous and peace- 
ful country reduced to a wilderness. Some of the Acadians 
escaped to Canada, but most were shipped to the English 
colonies, where many were left to beg their bread among 
people of a different race and speech, 

8. Attack on Canada. — Besides the expedition from Mas- 
sachusetts, two others were made, which had been planned 
by Braddock before he set out himself. One force under 
General Johnson was to occupy Ticonderoga, an important 
place on Lake St. George, hitherto neglected by the French. 
Dieskau, the French commander in Canada, marched out 
against Johnson. At tirst the French had the best of it, but 
the militia and the Indian allies could not stand against the 
English artillery ; Dicskau was compelled to retreat, and in 
the retreat received a severe wound. The English, however, 
filled to follow up their success, and allowed the French to 
occupy Ticonderoga. The other force, that under Shirley, 



XV.] CONQUEST OF THE OHIO VALLEY. 211 

contented itself with fortifying Oswego, a place on the frontier 
of New York. Hitherto hostilities had been confined to 
America, but in the next year war was formally declared be- 
tween England and France. 115,000/. was sent out by the 
English Government for the defence of the colonies, and pre- 
parations were made for a great American campaign. But, 
partly through the slackness of the various colonial govern- 
ments, partly through an outbreak of small-pox among the 
troops, nothing whatever was done. Montcalm, Dieskau's 
successor, was a brave and skilful soldier. With five thou- 
sand men he marched against Oswego, and took it. This 
place was on the territory of the Mohawks, and they had 
looked on its fortification with jealousy. Montcalm, to assure 
them that the French had no designs against them, destroyed 
the fort. Next year things went on much as before. Montcalm 
captured Fort William Henry, an English stronghold on the 
upper waters of the Hudson. In this year a dispute arose 
between the English commander-in-chief, Lord Loudon, and 
two of the colonial governments, those of New York and Mas- 
sachusetts. The colonists denied that the Act of Parliament 
which provided for the billeting of soldiers was binding on the 
colonies, and declared that special leave must be granted by 
the various colonial governments. New York soon gave way. 
Massachusetts was so obstinate that Lord Loudon threat- 
ened to march all his troops into Boston. The Massa- 
chusetts Government then came to a compromise. It passed 
an Act ordering that the soldiers should have the accommo- 
dation that they needed. Thus, while the colonists yielded, 
tliey implied, by passing this law, that the Act of Parliament 
did not bind them. 

9. Conquest of the Ohio Valley. — The ill-fortune of the 
English arms was not confined to America. In Europe 
they were defeated by sea and land. The spirit of the nation 
seemed utterly broken. But a mighty change was at hand 



2 12 THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. [chap. 

In 1757, Pitt became Secretary of State, with a strong and 
popular ministry at his back. He breathed fresh hfe into the 
EngUsh forces in every quarter. Nowhere was the change more 
feU than in America. Pitt, beyond all statesmen then living, 
understood the importance of the American colonies, and 
knew how to deal with their inhabitants. He ordered that 
the colonial troops should be supplied with munitions at the 
expense of the English Government. At the same time he 
won the hearts of the Americans by an order that the 
colonial officers should hold equal rank with those com- 
missioned by the crown. He also planned an expedition 
against Fort Duquesne. Washin,inon had repeatedly urged 
the necessity of this, declaring that the colonics would never 
be safe so long as that post was held by the Ktcnch. The 
expedition was somewhat hindered by the commander, 
General Forbes, who, instead ot marching along the road 
already made by Braddock, insisted on rutting a fresh one, 
more direct, but over a more dithcull country. It was 
believed in America that he was persuaded to this by the 
Pcnnsylvanians, to whom the new load was a lasting gain. 
An advanced detachment of eight hundred men shared the 
fate of Braddock's army. But, when the main body of six 
thousand men advanced, the French, finding themselves too 
weak to hold the fort, retreated. Thus it was decided that 
England, and not France, was to possess the valley of the 
Ohio and the rich territory of the west. The name of Fort 
Duquesne was changed to Fort Pitt, which has given its 
name to the considerable city of Pittsburgh. 

10. The Conquest of Canada. — Two other expeditions 
were sent out this year ; the first against Cape Breton, the 
second against Ticonderogn. These were warmly supported 
by the colonists. Massachusetts sent seven thousand men, 
Connecticut five thousand, and New Hampshire three 
thousand. The whole force sent against Luuisburg, thechie/ 



XV.] THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 213 

slioiTghold in Cape Breton, consisted of fourteen thousand 
men. Against this the French had little more than three thou- 
sand. The defeat of the French fleet by Admiral Hawke, off 
Brest, made it impossible to send help to Canada, and Louis- 
burg surrendered. This gave the English possession of the 
whole island of Cape Breton. The other expedition was less 
successful. In a fruitless attempt against Ticondcroga, Gene- 
ral Abercrombie lost two thousand men, and retreated. This 
failure was to some extent made up for by the capture of 
Fort Frontenac, a strong place on the west side of Lake 
Ontario. The next year, three armies were sent against 
Canada. One under General Wolfe was to ascend the St. 
Lawrence, and attack Quebec. A second was to march 
against Ticonderoga, and then to descend the St. Lawrence, 
and join Wolfe. The third was to attack Niagara and 
Montreal, and then, if possible, to join the other two. The 
two latter forces failed to join Wolfe, who was then left to 
attack Quebec single-handed. Quebec stands on a rock over 
the St. Lawrence, and just above the junction of that' river with 
the St. Charles. Thus it is placed in a fork of the two rivers, 
and being guarded on three sides by water, can only be 
attacked from the north-west. To reach it on that side, 
Wolfe would have to cross the St. Lawrence and to scale its 
north bank, which is lofty and precipitous. Another river, 
the Montmorency, joins the St. Lawrence about six miles 
below Quebec. The Fi-ench force under Montcalm was 
stationed between the Montmorency and the St. Charles. 
The position of the town seemed to defy an attack, and even 
the fearless heart of Wolfe sank. With little hope 01 suc- 
cess, he crossed the St. Lawrence below its meeting with the 
Montmorency, and attacked Montcalm, but was beaten back, 
partly through the eagerness of his vanguard, who rushed 
forward before the main body could cross the Montmorency 
to support them. As a last resource Wolfe resolved to cross 



214. THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. [chap. 

the river above Quebec, and to attack the town from the 
north-west. The stream was rapid, the landing difficult, and 
the precipice above the river could only be climbed by one 
narrow path. Nevertheless the English army crossed in 
the night, and safely reached the heights above the river. So 
desperate did this attempt seem that, when Montcalm heard 
of it, he miagined that it was only a feint to draw him from 
his post. When he learned his error, he at once marched by 
the city and made ready for battle. After a fierce engage- 
ment, in which Wolfe was killed and Montcalm mortally 
wounded, the French were defeated. The battle decided the 
fate of Quebec. Montcalm, when told that he had but a i&w 
hours to live, replied that it was best so, as he should escape 
seeing Quebec surrendered. No attempt was made to de- 
fend the place, and it was given up to the English, who 
garrisoned it with five thousand men. In the next campaign, 
the whole energies of the French were devoted to the 
recovery of Quebec. Sickness reduced the garrison to three 
thousand. Nevertheless, when the French army appeared, 
Murray, the English commander, marched out, and 
engaged them on the same ground on which Wolfe had 
triumphed. This time the French were successful, and the 
English troops retreated to the city with a loss of a thousand 
men. The French then proceeded to bombard the place. 
Fortunately the river, which was usually blocked with 
ice till late in the spring, that year became open unusually 
caily, and the English fleet was able to sail up and reHeve 
the city. The French now fell back upon Montreal, their 
only important stronghold left. A force of seventeen thou- 
sand men appeared before the place ; Montreal surren- 
dered, and the rest of Canada soon followed. 

II. The Cherokee War. — In the meantime the southern 
colonies had become engaged in a war with their Indian 
allies. The Cherokees, the most powerful and warlike of the 



XV.] THE PEACE OF PARIS. 215 

southern tribes, had been dissatisfied with their treatment by 
the Enghsh, and, being pressed by want of food, had 
phindered some settlements on the Virginian frontier. 
Hostihties followed, in which some Cherokee chiefs and 
some Carolina settlers were slain, Lyttelton, the governor 
of South Carolina, demanded the surrender of one Cherokee 
for every Englishman killed. The Indians refused, and 
Lyttelton declared war on them. They then sent messengers 
to excuse what they had done, and to offer presents. 
Lyttelton not only refused to hear them, but arrested them. 
The Cherokee chiefs thereupon signed a treaty, promising to 
surrender twenty-foar of their nation, and allowing Lyttelton 
to keep his prisoners till this was done. But the Cherokee 
nation afterwards disclaimed the treaty, and declared that it 
had been made without their authority. Soon after, an 
English soldier was killed in attempting to put the hos- 
tages in irons. His comrades in revenge killed the hos- 
tages. War now broke out, and the English invaded and 
desolated the Cherokee country. At the same time the 
Cherokees besieged and captured Fort Loudon, an English 
fort on the Tennessee. In a spirit of rude justice they put 
to death twenty-seven of the prisoners, mcluding the com- 
mander, that being the number of the ambassadors seized 
by Lyttelton. The rest they carried off as captives. During 
1760 and 1761, the English wasted the Cherokee country, but 
failed to striki. any decisive blow. In September 1761 hov/- 
ever the Cherokees, wearied out, sued for peace, and the war 
ended. 

12. The Peace of Paris. — The peace of Paris in 1762 
completely overthrew the French power in America. Before 
the terms of peace were settled, doubts had arisen among 
English statesmen whether it would be best to hold Canada, 
or to give it back to France, keeping instead Guadaloupe, an 
island in the West Indies, which had been taken by England 



2i6 THE ^'OUEST OF CANADA. [chap. 

from France, in the course of the war. Some thought that 
it was well to have French settlements on the frontier, as a 
check on the English colonists. Pitt, by his anxiety for the 
conquest of the Ohio Valley, had disclaimed any such 
ungenerous idea. The colonists themselves wished to be 
relieved from the duty of guarding a wide frontier. This 
view prevailed, and Canada and all Louisiana cast of the 
Mississippi became English possessions. The new territory 
was divided into three provinces, Canada, and East and 
West Florida, the former to the north of Massachusetts, the 
two latter to the south of Georgia, These latter must not 
be confounded with the American state which afterwards 
bore the name of Florida. The whole territory to the west 
of the Ohio was to be left unoccupied, partly to conciliate 
the natives, partly, it was thought, from dread of the rapidly 
growing strength of the colonies. 

13, Pontiac's War. — The English were not suffered to 
hold their new possessions in the west undisturbed. In 1763 
a number of the Indian tribes, headed by Pontiac, a dis- 
tinguished warrior of the Ottawa nation, took up arms. 
They destroyed most of the settlements in the Ohio valley, 
massacred more than a hundred English traders, and drove 
five hundred families to take refuge in the woods. The two 
strongest English forts, Detroit and Fort Pitt, were besieged, 
and were for a while in serious danger, but the garrisons 
held out bravely. The English were slow in sending help. 
Maryland and Virginia came forward readily, but Pennsyl- 
vania, as in the French war, was backward. As soon as the 
English forces marched against them, the enemy gave way. 
Partly from necessity, and partly by the advice of a French 
officer who had not yet departed, the Indians sued for 
peace, and the English again held the eastern bank of the 
Ohio in safety. 



XVI.] RELATIONS BETWEEN T"^- COLONIES. 217 
CHAPTER XVI. 

GENERAL VIEW OF THE THIRTEEN COLONIES. 

Rdatlons beiiveen the different cclonies (i) — relations to England {2) 
— slavery {i)—?node of life (4) — education, literature, and art (5). 

I. Relations between the Different Colonies. — Before going 
further, it will be well to take a general view of the thirteen 
colonies whose origin we have traced. By 1750' the whole 
population, not counting negroes, amounted to about a 
million and a quarter. Certain general points of likeness, 
as we have seen, ran thi-ough the institutions of all the different 
colonies. All of them had governments which were, to some 
extent, modelled on that of the mother country. In all the 
citizens retained their English rights of electing their own 
representatives and being tried by juries of their own country- 
men. But, in spite of these points of likeness, the colonies 
were marked off from one another by great and manifold 
differences. Roughly speaking, we may say that the colonies 
fell into two great groups, the Northern and the Southern ; 
the former taking in those north of Maryland, the latter 
Maryland and those beyond it. This difference was partly 
due to climate, and partly to the sources from which the fir^t 
settles had been drawn. The latter cause has been already 
mcniioned. The cUmate and soil of the South were suited 
to the cultivation of rice and tobacco, crops which require 
littie skill on the part of the husbandman. Moreover, the 
heat and the unwholesome air of the South, especially in the 
rice swamps of Carolina, make it difficult for Europeans to 
work there. Thus slave labour became the usual means of 
tillage in the South. The climate of the, Northern colonies, 



2i« VIEW OF THE THIRTEEN COLONIES, [chap. 

on the other hand, needed a system of mixed farming, 
which requires intelligence and care, and for which slaves 
therefore are unfit. Thus the class of yeomanry and pea- 
sant farmers, who formed the bulk of the population in 
the North, were almost unknown in the South. There was 
also a wide difference in religion between the Northern and 
Southern colonies. In all the Southern colonies the Church 
of England was established by law. Its clergy enjoyed tithes 
and glebes, and the majority of the people belonged to it. 
The Northern colonies, on the other hand, were for the most 
part founded by men actively hostile to the Church, and they 
kept more or less of the character with which they had 
started. While such differences as these existed, it seemed 
unlikely that the colonies could ever be combined under a 
single government. Two other things helped to make this 
more difficult. The original grants of land had been drawn 
up so carelessly that there was scarcely a colony which had 
not had disputes about boundaries with its neighbours, dis- 
putes which had sometimes led to actual violence. Moreover, 
the populations of the various colonies differed widely in size. 
Some of the colonies were five, ten, or fifteen times as large 
as others in population, while in extent of territory the dis- 
proportion was still greater. Virginia was far the largest, 
in both respects. We have seen how injurious such a differ- 
ence was to the confederation of the New England colonies. 
If it was impossible to found a firm and lasting union between 
four colonies so like in their origin and character, because oi 
that one drawback, how much more would it be so with 
thirteen colonies d T/ering in religion, climate, character, and 
to some extent in i:.ce. Schemes for union had been at 
different times suggested, but none got over this difficulty. 
If the large colonies were allowed any superiority on account 
of their greater size, then the independence of the smaller 
colonies would be endangered. If all took equal rank, the 



XVI.] RELATIONS ro E\'CLAND. 219 

lai-ger colonies might fairly complain that they bore more 
than an equal share of the burthen without any correspond- 
ing gain. 

7.. Relations to England.— The relation of the colonies 
generally to the mother country may be to some extent seen 
from what has gone before. Scarcely any had altogether 
avoided disputes with the English Government, but nowhere, 
except perhaps in Massachusetts after the Restoration, had 
these disputes ever seemed to threaten separation. Various 
Acts of Parlianient were passed, forbidding the colonists to 
make certain articles for themselves, lest they should inter- 
fere with the manufactures of the mother country. But 
neither these nor the navigation laws, though they sounded 
harsh, seem to have been felt as a serious grievance. The 
navigation laws wei-e for the most pait set at nought, and 
few attempts were made on the part of the Custom House 
officers to enforce them. Sir Robert Walpole, it is said, even 
admitted that it vvas well to connive at American smuggling, 
since of the money made in the colonies the greater part was 
sure to find its way to England. The restrictions on manu- 
factures were no real hardship, as it was cheaper for the 
Americans to import articles from England than to make 
them for themselves. In a country where land is cheap and 
fertile, and where therefore any man of moderate industry 
can make his livelihood as a peasant farmer, it is impossible 
to get artisans without paying much higher wages than are 
given in a country like England, where land is costly. Thus 
the colonists could not at that time make articles so cheap as 
those manufactured in England. In fact, as John Adams, 
one of the ablest American statesmen, said, America and 
Europe were two worlds, one fitted for manufacture, the 
other for production, and each made to supply the wants of 
the other. The greatest grievance which the colonies had 
against England was the character of the governors sent out. 



220 VIEW OF THE THIRTEEN COLONIES. chap. 

Too many of them were men of e\il reputation, ruined at 
home, and looking upon their colonial governments merely 
as means of retrieving their fortunes. Nothing interfered 
more with the friendly relations between England and 
America than the fact that the home government depended 
on these men for most of its information about the colonies. 

3. Slavery. — Slavery, as I have already said, was one of the 
great leading points of difference between the Northern and 
Southern colonies. By the middle of the eighteenth century 
slavery had reached such dimensions in the Southern colonies 
as to be a serious source of uneasiness. In Virginia the 
number of negroes was two to every three white men. In 
South Carolina the numbers were equal. The injurious effect 
on the industry and social life of the Southern colonies v/as 
already felt. When once slavery becomes prevalent, labour 
is looked down upon as a badge of inferiority, and the 
existence of a class of respectable free labourers becomes 
impossible. This was from an early time the case in the 
South. There were other evils attendant on the system. It 
bred up a set of men whom a Virginian writer describes as 
"beings called overseers, a most abject, unprincipled race." 
The young planter grew up surrounded by slaves, and learned 
from his very cradle to be arbitrary and self-willed, indif- 
ferent to the feelings of others, and accustomed to deal with 
those who knew no law but his word. In the North the evils 
of slavery were less felt, but nevertheless they existed. In 
1763 the proportion of negroes to the whole population of 
New England was only one in fifty. But there, just as in the 
South, they were treated as an inferior race, and debarred 
from equal rights. In Massachusetts a negro who struck a 
white man was liable to be sold as a slave out of the colony. 
Marriages between white persons and negroes were unlawful, 
and the clergyman who performed the service was liable to a 
fine of 50/. No negro might be in the streets of Boston 



XVI.] EDUCATION, LITERATURE AND ART. 221 

after nine at night. In New York, in 17 12, an alarm was 
raised, apparently without foundation, of a negro plot to burn 
the city. The supposed conspirators were apprehended, and 
nineteen of them put to death. 

4. Mode of Life. — Throughout all the colonies there was 
abundant prosperity, but little luxury ; enough of the neces- 
sities, , but few of the superfluities, of life. Owing to the 
abundance of unoccupied country and the consequent cheap- 
ness of land, there were scarcely any tenant farmers, and, 
except the Southern slaveholders, scarcely any large landed 
proprietors. The plainness of life is well illustrated in letters 
written from England by Benjamin Franklin to his wife. 
He tells her that he is sending home table-linen, carpets, and 
other such articles, as being far superior to any that could 
be got in America, and he dwells on the ordinary furniture of 
an English breakfast table as something remarkably luxu- 
rious. Indeed, it would seem from his letters that table-cloths 
were not generally used in America at breakfast. This 
roughness and plainness was mainly due to the cheapness of 
land. Where every man could become a farmer, few cared 
to work as artisans. Moreover, in a young country, all the 
labour that can be got is needed for bringing the land into 
cultivation, building houses, making roads, and the like, and 
little is left for things not absolutely needful. Another result 
of the cheapness of land was that men were not withheld 
from early marriages by fear of want, and thus the popula- 
tion increased far more rapidly than it does in old countries. 
5. Education, Literature and Art. — In one point the 
Northern colonies from the very first were in advance, not 
only of the Southern, but of most countries. This was the 
attention paid to education. In all the New England colo- 
nies provision was made for the maintenance of government 
schools. In all forms of intellectual and hterary activity the 
Northern States, and especially Massachusetts, took the lead. 



222 VIE IV OF THE TinRrEEi\ COLONIES. [cuap. 

In 1638 a college was founded at Cambridge in Massa- 
chusetts, partly by public funds, partly by private liberality. 
This was called Harvard College, after its chief benefactor, 
John Harvard. In Virginia, as we have seen, a college was 
founded about 1690. Yale College, in Connecticut, came into 
being in 1701, and by 1762 there were six colleges, all, except 
that in Virginia, in the northern colonies. Yet, in spite of the 
spread of education, there were in 1720 no booksellers' shops 
south of Boston, but only stationers' shops, where common 
school books could be bought. At Charleston however, 
where there was the most educated and polished society to 
be found in the South, a public library was started in 1700. 
By the middle of the century these institutions had sprung 
up throughout the colonies, and became important as means 
of spreading knowledge. The first American newspaper 
was the Boston News Letter, started in 1704. Another 
Boston paper appeared in 1719, and one at Philadelphia at 
the same time. As is usual in a new country where nearly 
everyone is pressing on to make a livelihood by farming or 
trade, and where there is little leisure for reading, the colo- 
nies had not, before they became independent, produced many 
writers of note. In the seventeenth century there were in New 
England a great number of writers on divinity, many of 
whom played important parts on the Independent side in the 
great controversy between that sect and the Presbyterians. 
Few of their works have any lasting interest or value. Besides 
these a few books were written on the history of the various 
colonies. By far the best of these books is Stith's History 
of Virginia, published in 1747. The author was a Virginian 
clergyman, and had access to the private records of the Vir- 
ginia Company. His book is clear and accurate, and for 
style it may take rank with the best English writers of that 
day. Unluckily it does not come down further than the dis- 
solution of the Company. Hubbard's History of the Indian 



XVI.] EDUCATION, LITERATURE AND ART. 223 

Waj'S is a minute record of the war with King Phihp, marred 
to some extent by violent prejudice against the natives. Of 
all American writers during the period through which we 
have gone, the greatest was Jonathan Edwards. He was 
born in 1703, and died in 1758. He was the son of an 
Independent minister in Connecticut ; he was brought up at 
Yale College, became himself a minister, and shortly before 
his death was appointed President of the college in New 
Jersey. He wrote on divinity and metaphysics, and is a sort 
of link between the Puritans of the seventeenth century and 
the great European philosophers of the eighteenth. The 
subject perhaps in which Americans most distinguished 
themselves was natural science. Benjamin Fi-anklin, whom 
we have already seen and shall see again as a statesman, 
gained by his discoveries in electricity a place scarcely sur- 
passed by any of the natural philosophers of his age. Indeed 
it was justly said of him that his exploits either as a states- 
man or as a philosopher, taken by themselves, would have 
won him an undying reputation. Godfrey and Rittenhouse 
were mathematicians of some eminence ; and Bartram, a 
self-taught Pennsylvanian, was described by the famous 
naturalist, Linneeus, as the greatest natural botanist in the 
world. James Logan, another Pennsylvanian, wrote books 
of some merit on natural science and other matters, and at 
his death in 175 1 left a library of four thousand volumes to 
the city of Philadelphia. In lighter branches of literature, 
poetry, fiction, and the like, America as yet produced no 
writers of any repute. This was perhaps because in New 
England and Pennsylvania, where there was most education 
and culture, enough of the old Puritan and Quaker temper 
was leit to make men look with some disfavour on such 
works. Thus when in 1750 an attempt was made to establish 
a theatre at Boston, it was forbidden by the Assembly as 
" likely to encourage immorality, impiety, and contempt for 



224 THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX. [chap. 

religion." The same causes checked the growth of art. 
Nevertheless, about the middle of the eighteenth century, 
there were three American painters of some note, West, 
Copley, and Stuart. The two former came to England. 
West gained considerable fame by large historical pictures. 
His works are for the most part disfigured by the coldness 
and formality which was common in the last century. 
Copley obtained some repute as a painter of historical pic- 
tures and portraits. His greatest work is a picture of Lord 
Chatham swooning in the House of Lords, after his last 
speech there. Copley is perhaps better known as the father 
of Lord Lyndhurst, the English Lord Chancellor. Stuart 
remained in America, and painted the portraits of some of 
the leading American statesmen. His works have consider- 
able merit, and some critics even go so far as to consider 
him superior in certain points to any of the portrait-painters 
of his age, save Sir Joshua Reynolds. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX. 

Di<:pule between England and the colonies ( i ) — the Stamp Act (2) — 
the effect of the^Stamp Act in Amcr.ca {l)— repeal of the Stamp 
Act (4) — Towtt^hend' s American policy (5) — p'occcdings in 
America [6] — the Boston ^^ massacre" yj)— further disturbances 
{^)—the Boston Port Act (9) — the congress of 1774 (lo) — pro- 
cecdings in Parliament in 1774 (il). 

I. Dispute between England and the Colonies.— How 
far the English Government could lawfully tax the colonies, 
was, as we have seen, a point on which there had been 
various disputes, and about which no fixed rule had been laid 



xvir.] ENGLAND AND THE COLONIES. 225 

cLown. English judges had decided that the colonies might 
lawfully be taxed by Parliament. But the colonists had 
never formally acknowledged this claim, and Parliament had 
never attempted to exercise the right except for the protec- 
tion of English trade and manufactures. During the reigns 
of George 1. and George 11., various proposals had been 
made for a general system of taxation in all the colonies. 
Sir William Keith, Governor of Pennsylvania, proposed such 
a scheme to Sir Robert Walpole. The Prime Minister 
replied : — " I have Old England set against me, and do you 
think I will have New England likewise?" In 1754, Lord 
Halifax, the Secretary of State for the Colonies, proposed 
that a general system of taxation should be put in force, 
arranged by commissioners from the various colonies. 
Several of the colonial governors took up the idea, and 
it seemed likely to be adopted. The Massachusetts Assembly 
gave its agent in England instructions " to oppose everything 
that should have the remotest tendency to raise a revenue- in 
the plantations." Other events happened about the same 
time to breed ill blood between the colonists and the mother 
country. In 1761 the custom-house officers at Boston 
demanded general search-warrants called Writs of Assist- 
ance, to enable them to search for smuggled goods, without 
designation of premises or of goods. The legality of these 
warrants was tried before the Supreme Court, which decided 
for the customs officers ; but public feeling was strongly ex- 
cited against the Government, and James Otis, the lawyer 
who opposed the custom-house officers, gained great popu- 
larity. In the same year a dispute arose in New York. Hither- 
to the Chief Justice had been liable to be dismissed by the 
Assembly. This right of dismissal was now transferred to 
the Crown. The Assembly tried to meet this by withholding 
the judge's salary, but the English Government defeated 
them by granting it out of the quit-rents paid for the public 

Q 



226 THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX. [chap. 

lands. In 1762 a third dispute sprang up. A sliip was sent 
to guard the fisheries to the north of New England against 
the French. The Massachusetts Assembly was ordered to 
pay the cost. They protested against this, and Otis drew 
up a remonstrance declaring that it would take from 
the Assembly "their most darling privilege, the right of 
originating all taxes," and would " annihilate one branch of 
the legislature." 

2. The Stamp Act. — All these things had been begetting 
an unfriendly feeling in the colonists towards the mother 
country. But soon Parliment adopted measures which 
excited deeper and more wide-spread discontent. The two 
most influential ministers in the English Government were 
George Grenville and Charles Townshend. Grenville was 
painstaking, honest, and well-meaning, but self-confident, 
obstinate, and ill-informed about America. Townshend was 
a brilliant speaker, but rash and headstrong, utterly without 
forethought or caution, and carried away by the love of new 
and startling measures. He was at the head of the Board 
of Trade, which then had a large share in the management 
of the colonies. In March 1763, Townshend brought 
forward a complete scheme for remodelling the colonial 
governments. He proposed to make all the public officers 
in America dependent on the Crown, to establish a standing 
army there, and strictly to enforce the navigation laws. 
The last was the only part of the scheme which was actually 
put in force. Before the other measures could be carried out, 
Townshend had left the Board of Trade. His successor, 
Lord Shelburne, refused to meddle with the taxation of the 
colonies. But in 1 764 he was succeeded by Lord Hillsborough, 
a man of no great ability or importance. Thus the control 
of the colonies was practically handed over to Grenville. 
The only part of Townshend's scheme of which he approved 
was the enforcement of the navigation laws, and he brought 



XVII.] EFFECT OF THE STAMP ACT. 227 

in, a bill for this purpose, which was carried. He also resolved 
to introduce a bill requiring that all legal documents should 
bear stamps varying in price from 6c. to $50. This measure, 
known as the Stamp Act, has always been looked on as the be- 
ginning of the troubles which led to the War of Independence. 
Grenville gave notice of this bill a year before he actually 
introduced it. Several of the colonies at once petitioned 
and passed resolutions against it. The Virginia Assembly 
appealed to the King, the Lords, and the Commons, declaring 
that the taxation of the colonies by Parliament was uncon- 
stitutional. New York did likewise. Massachusetts, Rhode 
Island, and North Carolina appointed committees to corre- 
spond with the neigbouring colonies about means of resist- 
ance. When the bill was brought before Parhament in 1765, 
six colonies protested against it. Nevertheless, only a few 
members of Parliament raised their voices against the 
measure. The most conspicuous of these were Barre and 
Conway, both Irishmen, and officers in the army. 

3. The effect of the Stamp Act in America. — The arrival 
of the news in America was at once the signal for an 
outburst of indignation. The surporters of the measure 
were burnt in effigy. Hutchinson, the Lieutenant-Governor 
of Massachusetts, was especially odious to the people, as 
the Act was believed to be in a great measure due to his 
advice. This provoked the colonists the more as he was a 
Boston man by birth. His house was attacked by night 
and pillaged, and he and his family had to flee for their lives. 
This outrage was resented by the better class of Bostonians, 
and the Assembly offered a reward of 300/. for the capture 
of any of the ringleaders. At the same time the Bostonians 
showed their gratitude to Conway and Barre by placing 
pictures of them in their town hall. The first colony which 
publicly, and through its government, expressed its formal 
disapproval of the Stamp Act, was Virginia. Among the 

Q 2 



228 THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX. [chap. 

members of the Virginia Assembly was a young lawyer 
named Patrick Henry. He had ah-eady made himself 
conspicuous in a law-suit which had taken place in Virginia. 
The stipend of the clergy there was paid, not in money, but 
in tobacco. In 1758 there was a scanty crop of tobacco, and 
the price of it rose. The Assembly thereupon passed an 
Act that the stipend of the clergy should be paid in money, 
at a certain fixed rate, proportioned to the usual value of 
tobacco, but below its price at that time. The King, persuaded, 
it is said, by the Bishop of London, refused to confirm this 
Act. The clergy then sued some persons who had paid 
them in money for the difference between that and the 
present value of the tobacco to which they were entitled. 
Henry, who was engaged as counsel against the clergy, 
boldly declared that the King's sanction was unnecessary 
to the validity of a law. He lost his cause, but won a great 
reputation as the champion of the popular party. This, 
coupled with his eloquence, in which he stood foremost among 
the American statesmen of his dav, marked him out as the 
leader of the opposition to the Stamp Act. In May 1765 
Henry proposed in the Virginia Assembly a series of five 
resolutions declaring that the colonies could not be taxed 
without their own consent. The Assembly, after a severe con- 
test, passed them, and, in the words of Bernard, the Gover- 
nor of Massachusetts, "rang the alarm bell to the rest of 
America." A fortnight after, the Massachusetts Assembly took 
the bold step of proposing to call a congress of deputies from 
all the colonies, to arrange means of resistance. The project 
was at first coldly received, and seemed likely to fall to the 
ground, till South Carolina took it up. In October, deputies 
from nine colonies, chosen by their representative Assemblies, 
met at New York. Virginia, New Hampshire, North Caro- 
lina, and Georgia were prevented from sending deputies, but 
expressed their sympathy. The Congress drew up addresses 



XVII.] REPEAL OF THE STAMP ACT. 229 

to the King, the Lords, and the Commons. In these they 
expressed their loyaky to the King and their affection to 
England, but declared that it was unlawful to tax the 
colonies without their own consent. Soon after, the Assembly 
of Massachusetts passed a series of resolutions setting 
forth the same principles. The people generally devised 
various means for evading the Stamp Act. In some pi Aces 
they used bark instead of paper ; in others they compelled 
the distributors of stamps to resign. Elsewhere they 
persisted so obstinately in the use of unstamped paper, that 
the colonial governors had to yield. Everything was done 
to make the colonies independent of English trade. A 
society of arts, manufactures, and commerce was formed 
to encourage native industry, and, to increase the supply of 
wool, no lambs were killed. From the outset of the contest, 
those in America who opposed the mother country were 
divided into two parties. There were some who held that 
the colonists ought not merely to resist the Stamp Act, but 
to deny the right of the English Parliament to tax them or 
to make laws for them. There were others who objected to 
the Stamp Act, on the ground that it was oppressive and 
ill-timed, but who did not wish to raise any wider question 
as to the general rights of England over the colonies. This 
formed an important difference of opinion, which, as the 
contest went on, grew wider and produced important results. 
4. Repeal of the Stamp Act. — The petition, and the ex- 
pression of public opinion in America, was not without effect 
in England. In the summer of 1765 Grenville went out of 
office. The King wished Pitt to form a ministry, and he 
would have done so, if his brother-in-law. Lord Temple, 
would have joined him. Pitt was the one leading statesman 
of that age who thoroughly understood the American 
colonies, who knew the value of their friendship, and the 
danger of their enmity. But unhappily, Temple would not 



230 THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX. [chap. 

support him, and he was unable to form a ministry. Still 
the change of government was a gain to the cause of the 
colonies. Lord Rockingham was the new Prime Minister. 
He was a moderate and sensible man, conciliatory in his 
views towards the colonies, but unhappily without the courage 
needful to carry out an unpopular policy. The real strength 
of his ministry lay in Conway and Edmund Burke. The 
former was among the few who had opposed the Stamp Act. 
The latter was as yet untried as a practical statesman, but he 
was specially fitted to deal with the question of colonial taxa- 
tion. He was an Irishman, and so had a peculiar sympathy 
with a dependent nation. An account of the European 
colonies in America, the best work of the kind then in 
existence, was generally, and it would seem justly, believed 
to have been written by him. Few men had more knowledge 
of the history and institutions of hib country, or could judge 
better how far the claims of the Americans were well-founded. 
Pitt too, though he would not join the ministry, gave it his 
support, as he described himself, " single, unsolicited, and 
unconnected." In one of his most eloquent speeches, he 
warned Parliament that in carrying out the taxation of the 
colonies, they would overthrow the principles on which the 
freedom of their own country rested. " America," he said, *' if 
she fell, would fall like the strong man ; she would embrace 
the pillar of the state, and pull down the constitution along 
with her." The ministry found help in another quarter. 
Benjamin Franklin was then in England, on business as 
the agent of Pennsylvania. He was examined before the 
House of Commons as to the probable eftect of the Stamp 
Act. He stated forcibly the objections to taxing the colonies. 
He pointed out that England would be, in the long run, the 
loser, as the Americans would in revenge manufacture arti- 
cles for themselves, instead of depending, as they always had 
done, on those sent out from England. In February, Conway 



XVII.] TOWNSHEND'S AMERICAN POLICY. 231 

moved the repeal of the Stamp Act, and it was carried by a 
majority of more than a hundred. The ministry marred the 
concession by bringing in a bill declaring that Parliament 
had a right to tax the colonies. This was opposed by Pitt 
in the Commons, and by Lord Camden in the Lords ; 
nevertheless it passed both Houses. The colonists were for 
the time too much delighted at the repeal of the Stamp Act 
to trouble themselves much about a measure which carried 
with it no immediate mischief. They received the news with 
great public rejoicings. Special honours were paid in various 
colonies to the King, Pitt, Conway, and Barre. But though 
the difficulty had been surmounted for the time, njuch 
mischief had been done. Violent language had been used 
on each side. Even the opponents of the Stamp Act in 
England regretted much what was said by the colonists, 
and complained that temperate remonstrances could find 
neither a publisher nor a reader in America. In England, 
on the other hand, few took the trouble to acquaint them- 
selves with the true state of the colonies, and thus the nation 
was, to a great extent, acting in the dark. One London 
newspaper, if we may believe Franklin, tried to frighten its 
readers about the increasing resources of the Americans, by 
telling them of a project for establishing whale fisheries in 
the upper Canadian lakes. Franklin, in ridicule of this, 
told his English readers that there could not be a finer sight 
than the whales leaping up the falls of Niagara. 

5. Townshend's American Policy. — In the following 
August Rockingham went out of office. He was succeeded 
by Pitt, now raised to the peerage as Earl of Chatham. He 
was at the head of an ill-assorted ministry, made up of men 
of different parties and conflicting views. Townshend was his 
Chancellor of the E.Kchequer. Failing health drove Chatham 
into retirement, and Townshend was left to carry out his own 
policy unchecked. He had been, as much as Grenville, the 



232 THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX. [chap. 

author of the Stamp Act, and he now proceeded to carry out 
the same pohcy. He brought forward and carried through a 
Bill imposing duties on various commodities imported to 
America. The revenue thus I'aised was to be placed at the 
King's disposal, and the civil officers in America were to be 
paid out of it. This, as we have seen, was a scheme which 
the colonists had always stoutly resisted. At the same time 
an Act was passed to punish the Assembly of New York for 
its disobedience to the English Government. It had refused 
to supply the King's troops with necessaries. Accordin^^dy, 
Parliament enacted that the Governor of New York should 
not give his assent to any measure passed bythe Assembly till 
it had obeyed the law on this point. This Act did not have 
the intended effect, as the New York Assembly stood firm. 
6. Proceedings in America. — When the news of these Acts 
came out to America, the spirit of resistance was kindled 
afresh. Massachusetts again was one of the first colonies 
to act. The Assembly drew up a remonstrance, and sent it 
to the ministry. It rested mainly on the ground that the 
colonies could not be taxed without their own consent. The 
Assembly then sent letters to all the other colonies, telling 
them what it had done. Before long P.Iassachusetts found 
itself in open opposition to the English Government. The 
anniversary of the repeal of the Stamp Act was kept at 
Boston as a public holiday. Some disorder, not apparently 
serious, followed ; and Governor Bernard made this the 
ground for demanding troops from England. Accordingly a 
regiment was sent out to be quartered in the town, and a 
frigate and four small vessels were ordered to lie in the harbour. 
About the same time the Custom-house officers seized a sloop 
called the Liberty, belonging to one oi the leading citizens of 
Boston, on the charge of smuggling, and called on the crew of 
a man-of-war to help them. The Bostonians resisted, and 
the Commissioners of Customs had to take refuge in the 



XVII.] THE BOSTON ''massacre:* 233 

castle. During the excitement and ill-feeling which followed 
these proceedings, letters were sent out from Lord Hills- 
borough, the Secretary of State, bidding Bernard to dissolve 
the Assembly, unless it would withdraw its circular letters to 
the other colonies. This it refused to do, by a majority of 
ninety-two votes to seventeen, whereupon Bernard dissolved 
it. Although not allowed to sit as an Assembly, the mem- 
bers came together as a convention without any legal power, 
and requested the Governor to call an Assembly, He re- 
fused, and ordered them to disperse. Instead of obeying 
him they drew up a fresh petition to the King, remonstrating 
against being taxed by Parliament, and against the civil • 
officers being made independent of the Assembly. The 
Council in the meantime had been also opposing the 
Governor. Two regiments were to be sent to Boston from 
Halifax, and Bernard gave orders that the Council should 
provide quarters for them in the town. The Council declared 
that it was not intended by the Act of Parliament that the 
troops should be quartered in private houses while there was 
room in barracks. After a dispute, Bernard and General 
Gage, who was in command of the troops, gave way. The 
citizens of Boston also agreed to abstain, as far as possible, 
trom the use of imported articles, by way of striking a blow 
at English commerce. In this they were followed by the 
southern colonies. In all these proceedings, except perhaps 
the affair of the Liber/y, the people of Boston seem to have 
acted with judgment and moderation. Another of their pro- 
ceedings was less justifiable. Otis and others collected four 
hundred muskets, which they stowed in the town hall, 
giving notice that they would be served out to the citizens if 
they were needed. 

7. The Boston '• Massacre." — The English Government 
now seemed inclined towards a moderate pohcy. The 
ministry with one accord proposed the repeal of all the 



234 THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX. [chap. 

duties except that on tea ; on that they were divided. Just 
as Rockingham's ministry, when it repealed the Stamp Act, 
still expressly reserved the right of taxing the colonies, so 
now the ministry retained the tea tax, not for its own sake, 
but lest, by repealing it, they should seem to give up their 
claim altogether. Thus the intended concession failed to 
conciliate the colonists. When the repeal of the duties was 
announced at Boston, the merchants of the town held a 
meeting, and resolved that the concession was insufficient, 
lioston soon became the scene of fresh and worse disturb- 
ances. The departure of Governor Bernard was celebrated 
by public rejoicings, by bonfires, ringing of bells, and firing 
of cannon. An unfriendly feeling between the soldiers and 
the Bostonians soon showed itself in various ways. Early in 
1770 disturbances broke out, and the soldiers and citizens 
came to blows. On the 5th of March a number of soldiers 
were surrounded by a mob, who hooted and pelted them. It 
is said that the soldiers had already provoked the mob by 
rushing through the streets, laying about them with sticks and 
cutlasses. At length the troops were provoked into firing 
upon the people, of whom they killed three and wounded 
eight, two mortally. N^xt morning a town meeting was 
held, and delegates were sent to Hutchinson, the Lieutenant- 
Governor, who after Bernard's departure was at the head of 
affairs, to demand the withdrawal of all the troops. He 
ordered one of the two regiments, that specially concerned 
in the disturbance, to withdraw to the castle ; but he kept 
the other in the town. The townsmen however insisted on 
the withdrawal of all the troops, and Hutchinson at length 
yielded. It is not easy to say how far the blame of this event 
— the Boston massacre, as it was called — lay with the mob, 
and how far with the soldiers. It is impossible altogether to 
acc(uit either. But it must be said in justice that the better 
class of the townspeople showed no wish to deal harshly 



XVII.] FURTHER DISTURBANCES. 235 

with the case. When Captain Preston, the officer in com- 
mand, and eight of his men, were brought to trial, John 
Adams and Josiah Ouincy, two young banisters of con- 
siderable repute, both of whom sympathized strongly with 
the popular side, undertook the defence. It seemed quite 
doubtful whether Preston had really given the order to 
fire, and how far the soldiers had acted in self-defence. 
Accordingly Preston and six of the soldiers were acquitted ; 
the other two were convicted of manslaughter. 

8. Further Disturbances. — Other events at Boston followed 
on the massacre, which kept up the ill-feeling between the 
townspeople and the authorities. The King sent out orders 
to exempt the Commissioners of Customs from taxation. 
The Assembly contended that the King had no right to 
meddle with the question of taxation, or to remit, any more 
than to impose, taxes. Soon after this it was announced that 
all the law officers were to receive salaries from the Crown, 
and to be independent of the Assembly. The citizens there- 
upon, at a public meeting, appointed a committee to draw up 
a statement of their grievances, and to publish it in the 
various colonies. In the autumn of 1773 Franklin sent out 
from England a number of letters written by Hutchinson to 
various public men in England, proposing measures against 
the liberties of the colonies; These letters called forth great 
indignation, and the Assembly, on the strength of them, 
petitioned for Hutchinson's removal. On one point the 
colonists seemed inclined to give way. They had entered 
into an agreement to injure English commerce by importing 
no goods from England. The wisdom of this policy seems 
doubtful. It forced the Americans to manufacture many 
articles which they might have imported more easily and 
cheaply ; and, when the war actually broke out, they were 
worse supplied than they need have been. In any case the 
agreement could have no effect, unless it were observed by 



2;5 THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX. [chap. 

all the colonies alike. For a while the colonists remained 
firm, but gradually they gave way. The only commodity which 
was altogether excluded was tea. In December another 
disturbance took place at Boston. Three ships containing 
tea arrived in the harbour. As this was the one commodity 
still taxed, those who were opposed to Government were 
specially anxious that none should be landed. Accordingly 
a number of them, disguised as Indians, seized the ships, 
and emptied the cargo — three hundred and forty chests 
of tea— into the harbour. The tea ships were sent back 
from Philadelphia and New York ; at Charleston the tea 
perished in the cellars, no one being allowed to sell it. 

9. The Boston Port Act. — Next year the English Govern- 
ment took steps to punish the Bostonians for their various 
misdeeds. The port was to be closed so as to cut off sup- 
phes ; the Assembly was suspended ; public officers or soldiers 
, accused of any offence were to be sent to England or Nova 
Scotia for trial, and all troops were to be quartered on the 
town of Boston. At the same time General Gage, the com- 
mander of the troops, was appointed Governor. One wise 
measure was adopted by the ministry. The French Cana- 
dians, most of whom were Roman Catholics, were granted 
full freedom of worship. They were also allowed to take an 
oath of fidelity to the King, instead of the oath of supre- 
macy, and to hold their property under their own laws. 
This wise and moderate policy was rewarded by the loyalty 
of the Canadians. The Acts against Boston were opposed 
by Burke and others, but in vain. In June 1774 the last 
Assembly under the royal government was held in Massa- 
chusetts. It passed resolutions recommending a congress of 
the different colonies, appointed five deputies, and voted 
them 500/. for their expenses, having previously passed 
resolutions reasserting the rights of the colonies, declaring 
Its disapproval of the arbitrary conduct of the Governor, 



XVII.] CONGRESS AND PARLIAMENT IN 1774. 237 

and recommending the inhabitants to leave off using im- 
ported articles, and to encourage home manufactures. 
Thereupon the Governor dissolved them. The other coloniej 
showed every disposition to support Massachusetts. The 
Assembly of Virginia set apart the 1st of June for a public fast, 
as on that day the Port Act came into force. For this they 
were dissolved by the Governor, but nevertheless most of the 
other colonies followed their example. Virginia and Mary- 
land both resolved to export no tobacco to England ; and 
South Carolina and Virginia gave rice and corn for the relief 
of Boston. In Massachusetts the spirit of disaffection in- 
creased. In some of the towns the people were ready to 
take up arms. In two of them, mobs took possession of the 
law courts, and would not suffer proceedings to go forward. 
When Gage took possession of the public store of powder, 
and moved it to the castle, the whole neighbourhood rqse up ; 
and in a day twenty thousand people were gathered together. 
They dispersed however without doing anything. 

10. The Congress of 1774. — In September the Congress 
met at Philadelphia. The Massachusetts deputies were re- 
ceived on their way with public honours. The Congress 
passed various resolutions expressing its sympathy witlr 
Boston, and denying the right of Parliament to tax the 
colonies. It also drew up an agreement pledging the 
colonies to have no commercial dealings with England. At 
the same time it sent a petition to the King and a memorial 
to the people of Great Britain, resembling the other docu- 
ments of the kind which had been issued beiore. The 
Congress also published an address to the people o. Quebec, 
representing that the Act of Parliament made them dependent 
for their freedom on the pleasure of England, and exhorting 
them to make common cause with the other colonists. 

1 1. Proceedings in Parliament in 1774. — On the 30th of 
November, 1774, anew Parhament met. The proceedings in 



238 THE STAMP ACT AND THE TEA TAX. [chap. 

its first session, with reference to America, were the most 
important that had yet taken place. Lord North, who was 
now at the head of the Ministry, being only a peer's eldest 
son, sat in the House of Commons. He was little more than 
the mouthpiece of the King, who was bitterly hostile to the 
colonies. Throughout the whole session a small minority, 
containing some of the ablest men and best debaters in both 
Houses, fought against the American policy of the Gov^ern- 
ment. The contest began when the Address to the King was 
moved in the House of Commons. An amendment was pro- 
posed, requesting that the King should lay all the facts about 
America before Parliament. In the ensuing debate, the 
ministry was severely blamed for its American policy, but the 
amendment was defeated by a majority of more than two 
hundred. In the House of Lords a like debate was followed 
by a like result. On the 3rd of February, Lord North an- 
nounced his American policy : the English forces in America 
were to be increased, the colonists were to be cut off from 
the American fisheries, and the colonies were to be punished 
with a different amount of severity, according to their various 
degrees of guilt. Those measures were brought forward 
separately, and, though each of them successively was op- 
posed, all were carried. At the same time. Lord North 
introduced a measure intended to conciliate the colonies, and 
to meet the difficult}^ about taxation. He proposed that the 
colonial assemblies should be allowed to vote a certain sum, 
and that, if the English Government thought it enough, the 
colonists should be left to raise the money in what way they 
pleased. This was a concession, but only a shght one, not 
likely to have much effect on the colonists in their present 
state of anger. During the same session, Chatham and 
lUuke each brought forward schemes for conciliation. 
Lhatham proposed that a congress from all the colonies 
should meet, and should make a free grant of a perpetual 



XVII.] PROCEEDINGS IN PARLIAMENT IN ij-j^. .39 

revenue to the King, to be spent, not on the payment of civil 
officers in America, but in reducing the national debt ; that 
the recent Acts against America should be suspended witliout 
being formally repealed, and that all the privileges granted 
by the colonial charters and constitution should be con- 
firmed. This scheme seemed to meet the chief demands of 
the colonists, and at the same time to save the ministry from 
an open confession of defeat. In spite of this, and of the 
high position and past services of Chatham, the House of 
Lords not only threw out the measure, but would not even 
suffer a copy of the scheme to- lie on the table of the House 
for consideration. Not long after, Burke brought forward a 
motion in the House of Commons, proposing to repeal the 
Acts against America, and to leave the taxation of the colo- 
nies to their own Assemblies. He spoke strongly of the 
loyalty of the colonists, and showed that, in claiming the 
right of taxing themselves, they were only holding fast to 
principles which Englishmen had always asserted. Never- 
theless, his motion was defeated by a large majority. On 
the loth of April a petition was presented to the King horn 
the city of London, representing the injury to trade and to 
the welfare of the kingdom which was likely to follow from 
the present policy towards America. The King, in answer, 
only expressed his surprise that any of his subjects should 
encourage the rebellious temper of the A*mericans. During 
the whole period which we have gone through in this chapter, 
ministers and Parliament were misled chiefly by their ignor- 
ance of the wants and feelings of the colonists. This was 
mainly due to their being dependent for information on 
colonial governors and other men of indifferent character and 
prejudiced against the Americans. Moreover, there was on 
the part of the King and his advisers a firm determination 
to hear no appeal from the colonists, however temperately 
worded, unless it acknowledged the right of Parliament to 



240 DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

tax them. On that one point the colonists were equally firm. 
At the outset they mii^ht perhaps not have quarrelled with 
the mere claim to that right, if it had not been harshly and 
unwisely exercised. But as the struggle went on, they became 
hardened in their resistance, and claimed freedom, not merely 
from a particular tax, but trom taxation generally. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

TPIE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 

Proceedings in America in 1775 (i) — resources of the colonists {2) — 
outbreak of the -war (3) — the Congress (3/1775 (4) — Bunker s Hill 
{^^urther proceedings of Coitgress (6) — attack on Canada (7) — 
■war in Virginia {%)— Purliament in the autumn of l-jj^ (9) — 
the British forces leave Boston (10) — ivar in North Carolina (ll) 
—formation of Independent :^tate Governments (12) — the Declara- 
tion oj Independence (13). 

I. Proceedings in America in 1775. — In the spring of 1775, 
the state of things at Boston became more threatening. 
There was no longer an Assembly, but the Convention of the 
colony was mustering the militia, providing for the safe keep- 
ing of the military stores, and making other preparations for 
active resistance. • In February, Gage, hearing that there 
were some cannon at Salem, sent to seize them. When the 
soldiers came to a river, their passage was barred by the 
country people, who took up the drawbridge and scuttled 
the only boat at hand, while the cannon were carried off. A 
fight seemed impending, but a clergyman interposed, and 
persuaded the people to lower the drawbridge. The troops 
marched over unmolested, but failed to find the cannon. In 
Boston the ill-feeling between the people and the soldiers 
showed itself in vanous wavs. In Virginia the colonists 



xvill.] RESOURCES OF THE COLONISTS. 241 

were also making read}' for action. There too a convention 
'nas called together. Henry, in an eloquent speech, warned 
the colonists that all hope of reconciliation was at an end, 
and that they must choose between war and slaverj^ They 
answered to his appeal, and proceeded to put the militia 
in order for service. Lord Dunmore, the Governor, there- 
upon seized the public supply of powder. He also en- 
raged the settlers by threatening that, if any violence were 
done, he would free and arm the negro slaves, and burn 
Williamsburg. 

2. Resources of the Colonists. — Before going further, it 
may be well to consider what resources the Americans had 
for the war on which they were about to enter. Their two 
chief sources of weakness were want of union among the 
colonies, and want of military organization and discipline. 
As we shall see throughout the contest, the shortcomings of 
the Americans on these points were constantly creating diffi- 
culties. Besides, there was a want of concert among the 
leading men. Some of them had already given up all hopes 
of reconciliation, and were resolved to aim at once at in- 
dependence, while others, to the last, clung to the hope of 
maintaining the union with England. Moreover, the Con- 
gress of delegates had no legal powers. It could only pass 
resolutions ; it could not enforce its decisions. As a set-oft 
against these drawbacks, there was much in the life and 
habits of the people which fitted them for such a war. It 
was not necessary that the colonists should win pitched 
battles. It was enough if they could harass the English 
troops, and cut off their supplies. For this sort of work the 
difference between well-disciplined soldiers and raw militia 
is less important than it would be in regular warfare. Many 
of the Americans too had experience in backwoods fighting 
with the Indians. Moreover the life of settlers in a new 
country calls out activity and readiness. A settler is not 

R 



2\2 DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

only a farmer, but a hunter, and to some extent a craftsman 
as well. Moreover, America was not like an old country, 
where the loss of a few large trading and manufacturing 
towns cripples the whole nation. There were also several 
weak points in the position of England. The nation did not 
go into the war heartily and with one accord. Many of the 
wisest statesmen and greatest thinkers were utterly opposed 
to the policy of the Ministry. The merchants, the Dissen- 
ters, and the Irish people, for the most part sympathized 
with the Americans. All these things made the case of the 
colonists more hopeful than it might have seemed at tirst 
sight. 

3. Outbreak of the War.— In April 1775 the long threa- 
tened contest began. Gage heard that the colonists had 
cannon and other stores at Concord, an inland town about 
half a day's march from Boston, He accordingly sent a force 
of eight hundred men to seize them. At Lexington, a town 
on the road, the troops met a small body of militia drawn 
up. One of the British officers ordered them to disperse. 
They refused, and the regulars fired, killing eight and wound- 
ing seven of the militia. The troops then continued their 
march to Concord. Outside the place they were opposed 
by a force of about four hundred men. The regulars 
got possession of the town and attempted to prevent the 
colonial militia from entering. Both sides then opened fire ; 
after a while the regulars retreated and marched back to 
Boston. They were harassed on the way by their opponents, 
who, as the news spread, received constant reinforcements. 
But for the arrival of a fresh force from Boston, it would 
probably have gone hard with the regular troops. As it was, 
Ihey are said to have lost nearly three hundred men before 
thfey reached Boston. The Massachusetts Congress at once 
raised an army. Recruits flocked in irom all quarters, and 
the British troops who were in possession of Boston were 



xviii.] THE CONGRESS OF 1775. 243 

blockaded by sea and land. The inhabitants were at length 
allowed to leave the place on condition that they sunendeied 
their arms. Many of them, it is said, suffered considerable 
hardships in their departure. Soon after, a force of a hun- 
dred and fifty New Englanders, under the command of cne 
P^than Allen, marched against Ticonderoga, a post of great 
importance on the Canadian frontier. The garrison was 
utterly unprepared, and the place was surprised and taken 
without difficulty. Crown Point, another strong place, was 
soon afterwards seized in like manner. There were other 
petty hostilities, in which the Americans had the best of it. 

4, The Congress of 1775.— In May the Congress met at 
Philadelphia. Twelve colonies sent delegates ; Georgia was 
not represented by a delegation until September. Strange as 
it may seem, even after what had happened the Americans 
did not give up all hope of reconciliation. They apparently 
thought that the policy of the ministry did not represent the 
feelings of the British people. Accordingly Congress ap- 
pointed committees to draw up a petition to the king, and an 
address to the inhabitants of Great Britain. At the same 
time it made preparations for defence. It resolved that no 
bills should be cashed for British officers, and no provisions 
supplied to British troops or ships. The army already 
raised by Massachusetts was adopted as the continental 
army. Companies of riflemen were to be raised in Virginia, 
Pennsylvania and Maryland. Money was coined, and a 
loan raised, in the name of the united colonies. The Con- 
gress also advised the difterent colonies to call out their 
militia. The most important step of all, was the appoint- 
ment ot a commander-in-chief. Ward, the commander of 
the Massachusetts iorces, was old, and had no military 
experience and no special capacity of any kind. Washing- 
ton's ability, his high character and his past services, pointed 
him out as the one man fitted above all others for the post, 

R 2 



244 DECLARA TION OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

This appointment was proposed by John Adams, a leading 
man in Massachusetts, and was cordially accepted by the 
whole Congress. The existence of such a leader at such a 
time was the greatest good fortune that could have befallen 
the Americans. Had his ability and integrity been less con- 
spicuous, or had he been open to the least suspicion of 
ambition or self-seeking, the northern colonies might not 
have endured the appointment of a southern general. As it 
was, that appointment served to bind together the two great 
divisions, and enable each to feel that it bore an equal part 
in the struggle. 

5. Bunker's Hill. — Before Washington could take com- 
mand of the forces, the first pitched battle had been fought 
on the 17th of June. Gage, who had been strengthened by 
the arrival of fresh troops, took steps towards occupying 
Bunker's Hill. This is a piece of high ground commanding 
Boston, at the end of the peninsula on which Charlestown 
, stands. The Americans determined to anticipate Gage, and 
occupie'^ the place with a thousand men. The British 
troops then marched upon the place to dislodge them. The 
ascent was steep, and the difficulty was made greater by the 
heat of the day and the length of the grass. With these 
advantages the Americans twice beat back their assailants, 
but at the third charge their stock of powder ran short, and 
as they had no bayonets, they were forced to retreat. The 
British were too much exhausted to press them severely. 
The loss of the Americans was about two hundred killed, and 
three hundred wounded. The British lost two hundred and 
twenty killed and over eight hundred wounded. Gage wrote 
home, that the rebels were not so despicable as many had 
thought them, and that their conquest would be no easy task. 
6. Further Proceedings of Congress. — It might have been 
thought that Congress would now give up all hopes of re. 
conciliation, and would have seen that nothing was left 



I 



xviil.] A'n\4CK ON CANADA. 245 

but either resistance or complete submission. This was the 
view of many of the ablest members of Congress. They 
held that, until the colonies definitely threw off the yoke of 
the mother-country, there could be no unity or firmness in 
their proceedings. But the majority still looked forward to 
the possibility of reconciliation. The leader of this latter 
party was John Dickinson, of Pennsylvania. He drew up 
a petition to the king, which was adopted by the Congress, 
loyal and moderate in its tone. The views of the extreme 
men on either side were well set forth in two speeches, made 
by Dickinson and one of his chief opponents, Benjamin 
Harrison, of Virginia. Dickinson, in speaking of his own 
address, said, " There is but one word in it that I disapprove 
of, and that is, Congress." " There is but one word in it 
that I approve of," said Harrison, " and that is Congress." 
The Americans however no longer addressed themselves to 
Parliament. The Congress forwarded an address to the 
inhabitants of Great Britain, setting forth the hopelessness 
of the attempts to subdue the colonies, and one to the Lord 
Mayor and City of London, thanking them for their ad- 
vocacy. 

7. Attack on Canada. — Congress now ventured on a bolder 
step than any that it ha(i yet taken. It resolved to send an 
invading force against Canada. To do this was in a great 
measure to quit the purely defensive position which it 
had hitherto held. The Americans however believed that 
Carleton, the governor of Canada, was about to invade their 
territory, and so considered that, by marching against Canada, 
they were only anticipating an attack. Three thousand men 
were sent out commanded by Richard Montgomery. He 
was an Irishman, who had served with distinction in the 
late Canadian war. Thinking that he had been insufficic nly 
rewarded, he had I'etired to a farm in New York, and had 
married into the family of the Livingstons, important 



243 DECLARATION OF IS DEPENDENCE. [chap. 

merchants in that colony and conspicuous as opjxjnents of 
the English GovernmenL At first Montgomery's efforts were 
succ^sful ; and Sl John's and Montreal both surrendered. 
The only check sustained by the Americans •was the defeat 
and capture of Ethan Allen, who had headed an expedition 
against Montreal, as reckless but not as successful as his 
eailier attempt against Ticonderoga. Quebec was now 
threatened by two forces, one under Montgomery, the other 
under Benedict Arnold, who had started from the mouth of 
tiie Komebec with eleven hundred men. In December their 
forces united before Quebec, and on the 31st they assaulted 
the town- The assailants were defeated, with a loss of sixty 
men killed and nearly four htmdred taken prisoners. Among 
those dain was Montgomery. No braver or more high-minded 
roan fidl in the whole war. In Parliament the friends of 
America lamented his death and {H-aised his niemor>', and 
ei-en Lord Korth generously admitted that he was brave, 
able, and humane, and that he had undone his countn' h>' 
his ^irtaes. The Americans, reinforced from the army of 
Wa^iii^too, continued itx four months to hlockzdt Quebec, 
- safktiag greatly from small-pox and the lack of provisions. 
From the position of die place it was impossible for the be- 
aegei3 to keep out supplies and fresh troops from England, 
When the garrison, strengthened by reinforcements, made a 
sally, the Americans retreated. Carleton, with great hu- 
manity, issued a proclamation, ordering that the sick and 
wounded, many of whom were scattered in the woods, should 
be soi^t out and relieved at the public expense, and, when 
well, should be suffin-ed to depart home. He also checked 
die Canadian Indians from maUng inroads on the New 
England frontier, 

8. IVar m Virginia. — In Virginia war had broken out 
hetween Locd Domnore and the AssemUy, Dunmore seized 
tiie powder bdoo^i^ to die adoor, and then, fearing the 
V^ofie, established himsdf on board a man-of-war. The 



xviii.] FARLIAMEXT IX THE ACTCMX OF i"-^. 247 

Assembly would not carry on business unless he would land. 
He refused, and at length the Assembly dissolved. As in 
Massachusetts, its place was supplied by a Convention, which 
proceeded to levy taxes and to put the colony in a state of 
defence. Dunmore then collected a fleet, and petty hosti- 
lities broke out between him and the people. In November 
he issued a proclamation, declaring martial law, and requir- 
ing that all persons fit to bear arms should join him, on pain 
of being treated as traitors. At the same time he promised 
their freedom to all negroes who joined him. By this means 
he raised a force of several hundred men. On the 9th of 
December the first serious engagement took place. The 
colonial troops were entrenched in a position defended by a 
narrow causeway. Captain Fordyce, with one hundred and 
twenty men, made the attack. He was met by a heavy fire. 
Fordyce fell, and his troops after a brave resistance were 
beaten back, ha\-ing lost about half their number. Dun- 
more "s party took to their ships and were soon joined by two 
vessels from Engl.md. These brought three thousand mus- 
kets, with which Dunmore was to arm the negroes and 
Indians. A flag of truce was sent on shore to the town of 
Norfolk, to demand provisions, which were refused. Dun- 
more then resolved to bombard the town. On New Year's 
Day. 1776, a cannonade was opened. Parties of sailors 
landed under cover of the ships" gims and set fire to the town, 
and by the evening, Norfolk, the richest city in Virginia, was 
a heap of ashes. 

9. Parliament in the Autumn of 177; — During the ses- 
sion of 1775, various attempts were made by the friends of 
America in both Houses of Parliament to change the policy 
of the ministry, but in vain. Partly through mismanagement, 
partly through ill-fortune, the supplies sent out to the British 
forces had miscarried, and great waste had ensued. The ex- 
penses of the war brought with them an increase of taxation. 



24S DECLARATION OF lAWEPENDENCE. [chap. 

Nevertheless, the ministry and the majority of Parliament 
held firmly to their previous policy. The King's Speech at 
the bejjinning of the session denounced, in strong language, 
" the desperate conspiracy " in North America. The petition 
of Congress was presented by Penn, the proprietor of Penn- 
sylvania, but Parliament decided not to consider it. Penn 
himself was examined before the House of Lords. His evi- 
dence went to show that the colonists were both willing and 
able to hold out, and that tliey were well supplied with men 
and arms. The Duke of Richmond in the Upper House, and 
Burke in the Lower, brought forwaid proposals for concilia- 
tion, but were defeated by large majorities. Lord Mansfield, 
who supported the ministry, plainly and courageously told 
the House of Lords, that England must either conquer by 
force or give way altogether. He illustrated his view by the 
story of a Scotch officer in the Thirty Years' War, who, point- 
ing to the enemy, said to his men, " See you those lads ? 
kill them, or they will kill you." The results of the session 
showed that the Government would be content with nothing 
less than the total submission of the colonists. The changes 
in the ministry about this time made the prospects of Ame- 
rica look even darker than before. The Duke of Grafton, an 
honest and sensible man, who had been at first in favour of 
the ministerial policy, but was afterwards convinced 01 its 
folly, left office. Lord Dartmouth, also a friend to the 
Americans, was succeeded as Secretary to the Colonies by 
Lord George Germaine, an able man, but of harsh and violent 
temper. A still greater loss to the cause of America was the 
retirement of Chatham, who was withheld by illness from 
taking any part in public affairs. Yet he showed what he 
thought of the ministerial policy, by ordering his son, who 
was aide-de-camp to General Carleton, to throw up his ap- 
pointment, rather than serve against the Americans. One 
proceeding on the part of the English government, which 



XVIII.] THE BRITISH FORCES LEA VE BOSTON. 249 

especially enraged the colonists, was the hiring of a number 
of German troops to serve in America. 

10. The British Forces leave Boston. — The position of 
Washington after he was placed in command was one of 
great difficulty. His troops were undisciplined ; there was 
great rivalry between the men of different colonies, and the 
supply of powder was quite insufficient. There was scarcely 
enough for the infantry, and the artillery was practically 
rendered useless. The Americans suffered too from the 
hindiance which always besets an army made up, not of 
regular soldiers, but of citizens. They were unwilling to 
stay long away from their homes and business. They would 
only enlist for short periods, and thus the army was for the 
most part made up of raw recruits. In numbers, the Ame- 
ricans had the best of it, being about sixteen thousand to 
twelve thousand of the enemy. But this advantage was in 
some degree lessened by the fact th^t the Americans had to 
guard a wide frontier, while the British had only to hold a 
single point. The chief superiority which the Americans 
possessed was their better supply of food and clothing. The 
British stores had been shipwrecked on their way out, and 
the famine in the West Indies cut off an important source of 
help. In spite of all the difficulties which surrounded him, 
the Americans grumbled at Washington for not striking 
some decisive blow, and in December, 1775, Congress sent 
him a resolution, authorizing him "to attack Boston in any 
manner that he might deem expedient." On the 4th oj IVIarch 
he resolved to make an attempt. After nightfall a heavy 
cannonade began from the American lines, and was kept up 
on both sides till morning. In the meantime Washington 
sent a force to occupy Dorchester heights, ground which 
commanded Boston harbour. The Americans, as might 
have been expected from an army of countrymen and larmers, 
were skilful at throwing up earthworks, and by daybreak they 



250 DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

were safely entrenched. The British prepared to dislodge 
them, but were prevented by a storm ; and befoi-e they could 
renew the attempt, the earthworks had been so strengthened 
that an attack was hopeless. It was impossible to hold the 
town while the Americans were in possession of this point. 
Accordingly on the 17 th of March the troops embarked, 
and Washington entered Boston. 

11. War in North Carolina. — In March, hostilities broke 
out in Noi'th Carolina. The assembly accused Martin, the 
Governor, of exciting an insurrection among the negroes, 
declared him a public enemy, and forbade anyone to com- 
municate with him. He thereuron raised the royal standard 
and collected a force, consisting mainly of emigrants from the 
Scotch highlands. An engagement followed, in which the go- 
vernor's forces were defeated, with the loss of many prisoners 
and much property, including, it is said, fifteen thousand 
pounds in gold. This success was of great importance to the 
colonists. By it North Carolina, which had been looked 
upon as one of the weakest of the colonies, had shown that it 
could defend itself 

12. Formation of Independent State Governments. — In 
the summer of 1776 Congress took the important step of 
declaring the colonies independent states. The feeling in 
favour of this measure had been gradually gaining strength. 
Many thought that the failure of the Canada expedition was 
partly due to the nation not having thrown itself zealously 
and heartily into the war, and that they would not do this, 
until independence had been declared. Congress did acts 
which implied independence long before it pronounced the 
word. In October, 1775, New Hampshire, through its dele- 
gates, petitioned Congress to be allowed to set up a govern- 
ment of its own framing. Congress however did not answer 
this request at once, hoping that reconciliation might still be 
possible. But the king's speech in the autumn of 1775,- and 



XVIII.] DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 251 

the rejection of the petition presented by Penn, convinced 
the Americans that there was no hope of the king or 'the min- 
istry yielding. Accordingly Congress assented to the propo- 
sal of New Hampshire, and at the same time advised South 
Carolina and Virginia to form independent governments. 
New Hampshire, while it formed a government for itself, yet 
declared its allegiance to Great Britain. Virginia showed a 
more defiant spirit. In January the convention of that col- 
ony passed a motion, instructing its delegates to recommend 
Congress to open the ports of America to all nations. In 
January, Massachusetts virtually instructed its delegates for 
independence ; in April North Carolina voted an explicit 
sanction. In May South Carolina organized a complete gov- 
ernment for herself; and Rhode Island, by an act of her leg- 
islature, discharged her citizens from allegiance to the king. 
13. The Declaration of Independence.— Those who sup- 
ported a thoroughgoing policy of resistance felt that it would 
not be enough for the states separately to declare themselves 
independent. The whole body of colonies must unite for 
that purpose. As Franklin said, " We must all hang together 
unless we would all hang separately." In January of 
1776 a scheme for confederation, drawn up by Franklin, 
was laid before Congress, but Dickinson, Franklin's col'eague, 
opposed it strongly, and it was thrown out. Nevertheless 
Congress about this time took steps which showed that it 
no longer acknowledged the authority of Great Britain. A 
private agent was sent to France, and the people of Canada 
were advised to set up a government for themselves. After 
long deliberation, the American ports were thrown open to 
the world, whereby the English navigation laws were set 
at nought. Early in June, Lee, of Virginia, proposed that 
Congress should declare the colonies independent. He was 
seconded by John Adams. Adams, like Franklin, had clung 
to the hope of reconciliation as long as there seemed any 
reasonable prospect of it ; but when once he was convinced 



252 DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

that it was impossible, he never wavered or looked behind 
him. A committee of five, including Adams and Franklin, 
was appointed to draft a Declaration. The substance was 
mainly supplied by Adams, but the form of words was due 
to Thomas Jefferson. He was a young Virginian, already 
known as a brilliant writer and a strong opponent to the 
authority of Great Britain. He was extreme in his views, and 
often hot-headed and intemperate in his expression of them. 
The Declaration of Independence, as it originally came from 
his pen, contained many expressions, which were afterwards 
softened down by his colleagues. On the ist of July the 
genei'al question, whether the colonies should be independent, 
was laid before Congress. Each colony had a single vote, 
decided by the majority of the delegates from that colony. 
Nine of the thirteen colonies were in favour of independence. 
South Carolina and Pennsylvania were at first opposed to 
the declaration, the former unanimously, the latter four to 
three. Delaware was equally divided, and so stood neutral. 
The New York delegates favored independence, but not 
having been formally elected, could not vote. On the 
first day of the discussion Dickinson vigorously opposed 
the motion, but the next day he and a colleague stayed 
away, and thus the vote of Pennsylvania was altered. 
The arrival of another delegate changed the vote of Dela- 
ware, and South Carolina, rather than stand alone, with- 
drew its opposition. New York alone was unable to 
vote, and on the 2nd of July, by the decision of twelve 
colonies, it was resolved " That these united colonies are, and 
of right ought to be, free and independent states, that they 
are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and 
that all political connexion between them and the state 
of Great Britain is and ought to be totally dissolved." On 
the 4th of July, the Declaration of Independence was laid 
before Congress, and was formally adopted. It set forth the 
grounds on which the revolt of the colonists was held 



XIX.] THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 253 

justifiable ; it brought eighteen charges against the king, 
and alleged that he had shown himself " unfit to be the 
ruler of a free people." Finally, it declared that the united 
colonies were free and independent states, that the con- 
nexion with Great Britain was and ought to be at an end, 
and that the colonies had full power to levy war, make 
peace, contract alliances, and act in all things as free and 
independent states. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 

The Ariicks of Confederatioii (l) — other proceedings in America (2) 
— the Tories (2,) — attack on Sctith Carolina (4) — Lord Eoive sent 
Old (5) -the British take Neiu York (6) — operations in Nexu yer- 
sey (7) — battles of the Brandywine and Germanlo-con (8) — Wash- 
ington's dijjicitllies (9) — the Convention of Saratoga (10) — ihe 
Convention troops (li) — a'liance with France {12) — affairs in 
England {iTj)— campaign ^1778(14) — British successes in the 
South (15) — Arnold's treason (16) — fuutiny of the American 
troops (17) — surrender of Cormvaliis at Yorktown (l8) — the 
American navy {ig) — conclusion of Pmcc (20j. 

I. The Articles of Confederation. — The Declaration of 
Independence left the thirteen colonies, according to their 
own claim, free and independent states. But it did not give 
Congress any legal authority over the citizens, or establish 
any central power over the whole body of states. It was 
clear that, without some such power, the war could not be 
carried on with any hope of success. Coincidently with the 
Resolution for Independence, a committee was appointed 
to draw up Articles of Confederation ; these however were 
not agreed on by the Congress till the following year, and 
they were not adopted by the whole body of states till 1781. 



254 THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

During the whole of that time all power lay with the 
independent State Governments. Congress, as before the 
Declaration of Independence, could only advise and could 
not enforce its wishes. There were two main difficulties 
which Congress encountered in settling a scheme of con- 
federation. The committee who drew up the articles 
proposed that each colony should contribute to the general 
treasury in proportion to its population. Most of the 
delegates from the Southern States contended that the 
contribution should be proportioned to the free population 
only. To count the slaves, they said, was as unfair as 
to count cattle. To this the Northerners answered that, 
by not counting the slaves, they would give slave labour an 
immense advantage over free. Free labour, in fact, would 
be taxed, while slave labour was left untaxed. This they 
said would be at once unfair to the North, and would have 
the evil effect of fostering slavery. In the end the original 
proposal was carried by the votes of the seven northernmost 
states. The dispute is interesting, as being perhaps the 
first symptom of a long and bitter conflict between the 
Northern and Southern States, springing out of the ques- 
tion of slavery. Another dispute arose as to the number of 
votes to be given to each state. The committee proposed 
that each state should send what number of delegates it 
pleased, from two to seven, but that, as hitherto, they should 
only have one vote between them. Others held that the 
states ought to have votes in proportion to their population. 
Otherwise, as they pointed out, if the seven smallest states 
carried a question, it would practically come to this, that a 
large majority of the nation would be ruled by a small 
minority. On the other hand, there was a strong leeling 
that a different arrangement would press hardly on the 
rights of the smaller states. This view prevailed, and the 
states retained equal votes. The Articles of Confederation 



XIX.] THE TORIES. 255 



were finally decided on in November 1777. They declared 
the thirteen states to be a confederacy called the United 
States of America. A citizen of any one state was to have 
full rights of citizenship in all the others. No state was to 
form any independent alliance cr treaty, or to make war, 
except in case of invasion. Various causes, as we shall here- 
after see, delayed the acceptance of these articles by the 
different states. 

2. Other Proceedings in America. — At the same time 
that the committee was drawing up these articles, the 
various states were forming their independent governments. 
All these, with two exceptions, were modelled on the old 
colonial governments, and consisted of a Governor, a 
Council, and a House of Representatives. Pennsylvania and 
Georgia had only a House of Representatives, thinking a 
Council unnecessary, but this change was found to work 
badly, and after a while they adopted a like system with the 
rest. Congress during the summer of 1776 sent three 
Commissioners to France, to make secret negotiations for 
an alliance. Franklin opposed this, saying that " a virgin 
state should preserve the virgin character, and not go about 
suitoring for alliances, but wait with decent dignity for the 
application of others." He was however overruled, and he 
was himself appointed one of the Commissioners. 

3. The Tories. — It must not be thought that the American 
people had gone into the contest with one accord. There 
was a party, not indeed numerous, but containing several 
men of influence, called by the Americans Tories, and by 
the British Loyalists, who held fast to England. The middle 
colonies. New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, were 
the quarter in which this party mustered strongest. The 
Americans seem to have regarded the Tories with even 
greater hatred than they did their British enemies, and 
to have treated them in many cases with great harshness. 



2j6 THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

Even Washington, usually the most just and moderate of 
men, was betrayed into using language brutally unfeeling in 
speaking of their sufferings. But it must in fairness be said 
that he spoke with great severity of unlawful outrages 
committed by his own soldiers on the property of alleged 
Tories, and that he never seems to have given any sanction 
to their ill-treatment. Though the Tories in the early part 
of the war caused a great deal of uneasiness to the Americans, 
they seem on the whole to have been of very little service to 
the British. Indeed, as we shall find throughout the whole 
Av'ar, the worst enemy with which the British had to deal 
was, not the armies of the Americans, but the enmity of the 
common people. 

4. Attack on South Carolina. — In May, 1776, a British 
squadron of ten ships under Sir Peter Parker arrived on 
the coast of South Carolina, and were joined by a land force 
under General Clinton. The point arrived at was Sullivan's 
Island, about six miles from Charleston, and commanding 
that place. This island was fortified bv the Americans. On 
the 28th of June, the fleet opened a cannonade against the 
island, and the firing was kept up all day. It was intended 
that Clinton's forces should wade across an arm of the river 
and attack the island. The water however was too deep 
to be forded, and this plan was given up. Before night the 
fleet withdrew with a loss of som.e two thousand killed and 
wounded. The Americans stated their own loss at less than 
one-fifth of that number. The victory was of great impor- 
tance,, as for the present it saved Charleston, practically the 
capital of the three southernmost colonies. 

5. Lord Howe sent out. — In the summer of 1776 Admiral 
Lord Howe was sent out in command of the British naval 
forces in American waters, and as joint commissioner with 
his brother, Sir William Howe, the commander-in-chief of 
the land forces, for restoring peace. The brothers Howe 



XIX.] THE BRITISH TAKE NEW YORK. 257 

were entrusted with a commission for the pacification of 
America on a plan which had been drawn up by the Minis- 
try and approved by Parhament ; but as this only empow- 
ered the Commissioners to receive submissions and to grant 
pardons, and as the Americans had no wish to submit and 
would not allow that they needed pardon, the commission 
was of no great value. In one way the selection of Lord 
Howe was a judicious one. His brother, the former Lord 
Howe, had fallen in the war against the French in Canada, 
and the Colony of Massachusetts had set up a monument to 
him in Westminster Abbey. Lord Howe himself had made 
great exertions for the reconciliation of the colonics with the 
mother-country. Yet it was a measure of doubtful wisdom 
to make the commanders of the military and the naval forces 
the commissioners for pacification. One class of duties were 
likely to interfere with the other; and, in fact, the Ameri- 
cans were less disposed to listen to proposals of peace from 
those who bore the sword in the other hand ; while the Howes, 
especially Sir William, were charged with indifference'in fol- 
lowing up a military advantage, as if peace might soon be 
made. 

6. The British take New York. — In August the British 
force, numbering full 15,000, disembarked on Long Island. 
That island was the key of New York. It was held by the 
Americans under General Putnam, who was stationed with 
about 8,000 men at Brooklyn, a strong piece of ground just 
opposite the city of New York, and separated from it by a 
sheet of water called the East River. Putnam suffered him- 
self to be surrounded, and his troops were defeated with 
great loss, under the eyes of Washington, v>ho saw the 
battle from the opposite shore. If Howe had followed up 
iiis success, it might have been nt'..;!y fatal to the American 
cause. But he hesitated, and Washington succeeded in 
getting his whole force safely across the East River. For 
forty-eight hours it is said he never slept and scarcely even 



2S8 THE WAR OF LVDEPENDEh'CE. [ctiap. 

dismounted. With such care and good order was the retreat 
managed that it was not detected by the enemy till it was 
complete. The British themselves allowed that the manner 
in which this was executed did great credit to the military 
skill of Washington. In another engagement a few days 
later, in front of New York, the Americans were again de- 
feated. This time there is little doubt that many of the 
Americans behaved with great cowardice. Probably the de- 
feat at Brooklyn had utterly shattered their confidence. After 
this Washington made no attempt to hold New York, and on 
the 15th of September the British soldiers- entered the town 
unopposed. Here again it was thought that Howe did not 
follow up his advantage as he might have done against the 
retreating Americans. During these operations a conference 
was held between Lord Howe and three commissioners from 
Congress. The meeting was a friendly one, and Lord Howe 
expressed his sincere wish to befriend America, but nothing 
likely to lead to peace could be arranged. 

7. Operations in New Jersey. — Washington now adopted 
an entirely new policy. It was clearly useless to oppose his 
undisciplined troops to the British. Accordingly he deter- 
mined to avoid a general engagement, and to content himself 
with petty skirmishes, in which defeat would not be fatal, 
while success would give his soldiers experience and con- 
fidence. In this policy he was helped by the singular want 
of energy shown by the British commanders. Though a 
pitched battle was almost sure to have resulted in their 
favour, and though one decisive victory might almost have 
settled the war, yet no attempt was made to bring on a 
general engagement. Washmgton was suflered to fall back 
beyond the Delaware, leaving the whole country between that 
river and the Hudson in the hands oi the British. But 
though the British had not turned their superiority to full 
account, yet the cause of America never looked more hope- 



XIX.] OPERA TIONS IN NE W JEJiSE Y. 259 

less than it did at this time. The American troops were no 
longei", as they were at Boston, in a country whence they could 
draw ready and plentiful supplies. The three middle states, 
New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, were, as I have said, 
throughout the war the least faithful to the American cause. 
The contrast between Washington's undisciplined, ill-sup- 
plied, and retreating troops, and the well-drilled and trium- 
phant British army must have strengthened the feeling in 
favour of Great Britain. So completely did the invading forces 
seem to have gained the command of the country that the 
Congress fled from Philadelphia in fear of an immediate 
attack. Washington's army was dwindling from day to day, 
as many of the men had served their time and would not 
re-enlist. Lee, one of his best officers, was surprised in his 
quarters and taken prisoner. To complete the misfortunes oi 
the Americans, Parker and Clinton, after their discomfiture in 
Carolina,had proceeded against Rhode Island and occupied it. 
The tide however soon turned. Late in December Washing- 
ton made a bold dash across the Delaware, and cut off a whole 
British detachment at a place called Trenton, taking a 
thousand prisoners and scarcely losing a single man himself. 
Encouraged by this, he fell unexpectedly on the rear of 
Cornwallis's army and inflicted considerable loss on it. He 
then threw out scattered detachments, who overran the 
country, taking one post after another, till at last the British 
held only two places, Brunswick and Amboy, south of the 
Hudson. The eiTect of this campaign was most disastroi'S 
to the British. The Tories, who were numerous in New 
Jersey and Pennsylvania, found themselves left to the mercy 
of their enemies. Few would join the British standard when 
it had proved so incapable 01 protecting them. Moreover 
the conduct 01 the British troops, and still more that of 
their allies, had not been such as to win the friendship of 
the inhabitants. 

S 2 



25o THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

8. Battles of the Brandywine and Germantown. — During 
the spring of 1777 both armies kept quiet. Washington, as 
before, avoided a pitched battle, while the British contented 
themselves with destroying some of the American magazines. 
In some of the skirmishes which ensued, great daring was 
shown on each side, especially by General Arnold. The 
Americans obtained one success which gave them special 
satisfaction. By a bold stroke they seized Prescott, a 
British general, in his quarters, and carried him off. This 
capture they considered an equivalent for the loss of General 
Lee the year before. In June Howe began his operations 
against Philadelphia. Failing to force his-way through New 
Jersey, he returned to New York, and embarking, sailed 
southwards into the Chesapeake Bay, and proceeded up the 
Elk river to a spot about seventy miles from Philadelphia. 
Washington was at first puzzled by Howe's embarkation, and 
did not know at what part of the coast the British were aiming. 
Finally he drew up his troops on the Brandywine, a stream 
some thirty miles from Philadelphia, and there awaited Howe. 
Washington was well informed as to his enemy's movements, 
but through the failure of a subordinate, Lord Cornwallis 
was enabled to cross the river and fall on the flank of the 
Americans before they were fairly in position. After a sharp 
engagement, the Americans were defeated with the loss of 
nearly one thousand men and eleven pieces of artillery. 
No further attempt was made to hold Philadelphia, and on 
the 26th of September the British entered the city. The 
Americans, foreseeing that they might lose Philadelphia, 
had taken various precautions to block the navigation of 
the river below it, by sinking ships, placing barriers 
across, and erecting batteries on the banks. These how- 
ever were all removed by the British. Their defeat at 
the Brandywine and the loss of Philadelphia do not seem 
to have dispirited the Americans as much as might have 
been expected. The events of the previous year had 



XIX.] WASHINGTON'S DIFFICULTIES. 261 

taught them \vith what speed a seemingly brilliant success 
might be reversed, and that it was harder for the British to 
hold a district than to conquer it. Moreover- they had pro- 
bably seen enough of Howe to know that he would not follow 
up his victory promptly and vigorously. Washington soon 
showed that he had not lost confidence either in himself or 
in his troops. A large portion of the British army was at 
Germantown, a village six miles from Philadelphia. Wash- 
ington marched against them and, helped by a fog, took 
them by surprise. At first the battle seemed likely to be a 
complete victory for the assailants, but the British raUied, the 
Americans fell into confusion, which was made worse by the 
fog, and finally they retreated, leaving the British in posses- 
sion of the field. The British loss was about five hundred, 
the American more than double. Nevertheless the result of 
the battle seems to have been looked on by the Americans as 
encouraging. Their trcops had boldly attacked a superior 
force, and for a while with success. Most of their victories 
before had been surprises, or had consisted in defending 
themselves behind fortifications. In the open field their 
lack of discipline, of military supplies and of trained com- 
manders had commonly rendered them unsuccessful ; and 
not infrequently panic had come with defeat, as is apt to be 
the case with raw soldiers. Thus the battle of Germantown, 
though unimportant in itself, was looked on in some measure 
as a turning point. The French especially deemed it a proof 
of greater military prowess than they had yet given the Ameri- 
cans credit for. After this no further operation of any import- 
ance took place before both armies went into winter quarters. 
9. Washington's Difficulties. — Though the condition of 
Washington and his army was on the whole more hopeful 
than it had been in the summer of 1776, yet it was in many 
respects deplorable. Many of the men were without the 
ordinary necessaries of life. They had neither shoes, blankets, 



262 THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

nor shirts. As Washington said, they Hterally served in the 
field, since most of them had no tents to cover them. So 
badly off were they for supplies, that Washington at one time 
declared that the army would soon have " to starve, to dis- 
solve, or to disperse in quest of food." The same evil which 
had beset Washington at the outset still went on, the system 
namely of short enlistments. Till he had an army definitely 
enlisted for the whole war, Washington felt that he never 
could achieve any great success. Moreover, the recruiting 
was hindered by the system which allowed each state to 
decide for itself the terms on which its men should serve. 
Some states gave large bounties, others small, and, as might 
have been expected, the latter got but few recruits, and those 
discontented. Another grievance, against which Washington 
protested strongly and repeatedly, was the want of a system 
of half-pay. Thus the officers could never look upon their 
profession as affording them a provision for life, and without 
this few could feel any real and lasting attachment to the 
service. This and other measures for the improvement and 
relief of the army, were hindered by the extreme dread which 
Congress had of the growth of a military despotism. It was 
especially opposed to the system of half-pay, as tending to 
establish a privileged class, and to weaken those principles 
of liberty and equality on which the government rested. 
Under all these trials, Washington's moderation and patience 
never failed. He remonstrated with Congress on their in- 
activity, but always in a dignified and temperate tone. When 
compelled to levy supplies by force, he did his utmost to 
make his demands as little exacting and annoying as might 
be. No failure or disappointment betrayed him into harsh- 
ness or injustice to his subordinates. No shadow of jealousy 
ever seems to have crossed his mind. All who deserved 
praise received it, heartily and generously bestowed, while 
no man was ever more indifferent to his own just claims to 
honour. 



XIX.] THE CONVENTION OF SARATOGA. 263 

10. The Convention of Saratoga. — In the meantime opera- 
tions of great importance had been going forward in the 
north. In June 1777 a force of 7,000 men, under the com. 
mand of Genei'al Burgoyne, set out from Canada for the 
invasion of the Northern States. Their plan was to march 
down the valley of the Hudson and so cut off New England 
from the rest of America. Amongst Burgoyne's troops was 
a force of Indians, the first that had been used on either side 
in any of the regular operations of this war. Their want of 
discipline and their unfitness for regular service made them 
of little use to the British, while the cruelties of which they 
were guilty enraged the Americans and greatly embittered 
the contest. It must be said in justice to Burgoyne that he 
did his best to restrain his savage dllies. Nor had the 
Americans much right to complain of the employment of 
the Indians, since it would seem that they themselves were 
willing enough to enlist them if the British had not been be- 
forehand with them. At first things went well with Burgoyne. 
Ticonderoga and other strong places on the frontier were 
taken, partly, it was thought, through the incapacity of their 
commanders. But belore long the difficulties of Burgoyne's 
situation became manifest. He had to march through a 
country of forests and swamps, where no supplies could be 
got, and thus the troops had to carry everything with them. 
Moreover the British were not strong enough in numbers to 
keep up communications with Canada. Gates, who was in 
command of the American army in the north, was a man of 
no great ability, but he was ably seconded by Arnold. The 
first check that Burgoyne received was in August at Ben- 
nington, where two detachments of his troops, sent off to 
seize an American magazine, were attacked successively by 
General Stark before they could unite, and both utterly 
defeated. Encouraged by this and urged by the immediate 
pressure of invasion, the New Englanders flocked to Gates's 



264 THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

standard, and he was soon at the head of a large, well-armed, 
and active, though undisciplined force. In September and 
October a number of fierce engagements took place in the 
neighbourhood of Saratoga, in all of which the British suf- 
fered heavy loss, though they held their ground. But in 
their condition an undecided battle was as fatal as a defeat. 
General Clinton was' to have marched from New York and 
to have joined Burgoyne. He was hindered in starting by 
want of supplies. Like Burgoyne, he obtained some success 
at the outset, but the delay in starting proved fatal. With 
his troops surrounded, worn out with hardships and long 
marches, and reduced to the greatest straits for supplies, 
Burgoyne had no choice but to surrender. Gates granted 
him liberal terms. The British troops were not to be 
treated as ordinary prisoners of war, but were to be allowed 
to return to England on condition of not serving again in 
America. The officers were to be admitted to parole, and 
the regiments were to be kept together and to retain their 
baggage. This surrender, the Convention of Saratoga, as it 
was called, has been usually looked on as the great turning- 
point in the War of Independence. Hitherto the result of the 
war seemed doubtful, inclining perhaps rather in favour of 
the British. Now it became clear that the success of the 
Americans was merely a question of time. 

II. The Convention Troops. — The treatment of the 
Saratoga prisoners, or, as they were called, the Convention 
troops, was in no wise creditable to the Americans. Instead 
of being properly quartered, as had been promised, they were 
crowded together into close barracks, regardless of rank. 
They were also broken up into several detachments. The 
straitened circumstances of the Americans were urged in 
excuse of these breaches of agreement, but it would seem 
that the difficulty might have been got over. The letters of 
Jefferson, written at the time, show that he looked on this 



XIX.] ALLIANCE WITH FRANCE. 265 

affair as a blot on the honour of his country. Finally, the 
troops were not allowed to sail, although the British fur- 
nished transports for them, on the ground that no time was 
fixed for the fulfilment of the treaty, and that there was a 
dift'erence between refusing and merely delaying their de- 
parture. Throughout the whole of the war the treatment of 
prisoners generally was a matter of frequent, and seemingly 
of just, complaint on both sides. The British in some 
cases claimed the right of treating the Americans, not as 
prisoners of war, but as rebels, and this led to retahation. 

12. Alliance with France. — The most important immediate 
result of the American success was the conclusion of an 
alliance with France. As we have seen, one of the first 
steps taken by Congress was to send three commissioners, 
Deane, Lee, and Franklin, to France. The choice of Franklin 
was in many ways a happy one. There was at that time 
a strong passion for natural science in France, and Franklin's 
attainments in that study made him popular and admired there. 
The Americans were less fortunate in his colleague Deane* 
He caused much trouble by entering into various contracts 
in the name of Congress without any sufficient authority. 
For a time the French Government confined itself to secretly 
helping the Americans with money and arms. One form 
in which the friendship of the French for America showed 
itself, though well meant, was very inconvenient. Many 
young and inexperienced Frenchmen volunteered their 
services to the Americans. Their ignorance of the English 
language made them utterly useless, while their promotion 
was a constant source of jealousy and dissatisfaction in the 
American army. To this there was one notable exception, 
the Marquis of Lafayette. The Americans also had the aid 
of two able German soldiers, the Baron Steuben and the 
Baron de Kalb, who were of very great service in drilling and 
disciplining the " Continental" troops. Lafayette was a young 



266 THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

man of high family. Inflamed with enthusiasm at the sight 
of a people fighting for their freedom, he crossed to America 
in spite of the opposition of his friends and kinsfolk. His 
courage and other noble qualities endeared him to Washing- 
ton, and he took a prominent part in military operations 
during the later years of the war. He did even greater 
service by enlisting the sympathies of the French court 
and nation in favour of America. So persistent and so 
successful was he in this that some one said that it 
was well that he did not want the furniture of Versailles 
for his beloved Americans, as the king could never have 
refused it. During the first two years of the war, the French 
had not faith enough in the strength and perseverance of 
the Americans to enter into an .alliance with them. But v/ith 
the defeat of Burgoyne and the battle of Germantovvn this 
feeling changed, and in February 1778 a treaty was signed. 
Each nation promised to help the other in defensive and offen- 
sive operations. The war was to be carried on in support of 
the freedom, sovereignty, and independence of the United 
States. All conquests in America were to belong to the 
Americans ; all in the West India Islands to France. Nei- 
ther nation was to conclude a separate peace. The French 
alliance was, in a military point of view, an undoubted gain 
to America. Without it, the war might have been prolonged 
for many years. It gave the Americans the one thing that 
they needed, a fleet. As long as the British had com- 
mand of the sea, they could move from point to point, and 
could attack any part of the coast before the Americans 
could march to its defence. The alliance however had 
its drawbacks. It drew America into the whirlpool of 
European politics, in which it had no natural share or 
mterest. Moreover, it greatly strengthened the hostility of 
the British, and made enemies of many who had hitherto 
been lukewarm or even fiiendly. It would ha\e been at 



xtx.] AFFAIRS IN ENGLAND. 267 

once more creditable to America, and less painful to 
England, if the Americans had won their independence by 
their own unaided exertions. They possibly might not have 
done so, but that would have been due rather to the want 
of energy and patriotism than to the weakness of the nation. 
13. Affairs in England. — For more than a year after the 
Declaration of Independence the affairs of America made 
little stir in England. The declaration, if it had united 
America, had united England too, and many who before had 
been opposed to the ministry now acquiesced in its policy. 
But in the spring of 1778 Chatham returned to parliament, 
and his voice was at once raised against the ministry. He 
was indeed strongly opposed to the separation of America 
from Great Britain ; but he was quite as strongly opposed 
to the means hitherto used for preventing that separa- 
tion. In one of his most eloquent speeches he denounced 
the policy of the ministry, who had armed the Indians 
against men of English blood. When the defeat of Bur- 
goyne was known, the feeling against the ministry became 
general. Hitherto the opponents of the ministry had de- 
nounced the folly and injustice of an attempt to coerce 
the Americans ; now they began to insist on its hope- 
lessness. The ministry itself was in a state of weakness 
and confusion. Lord George Germaine had resigned his 
office in consequence of quarrels with Carleton and Howe. 
Lord North, who was now convinced of the hopelessness 
of the undertaking, would gladly have yielded to the 
Americans or have left office, but the King would not hear 
of either. In February, Lord North so far changed his 
former policy as to bring in two bills, one pledging the 
English Government never to impose a direct tax on the 
colonies, the other proposing to send out five commis- 
sioners to treat with the Americans, with full power to 
suspend all Acts passed since 1763. Both bills were 



25S THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

carried, and the commissioners went out, but, like Howe 
two years before, they could do nothing. Three or 
four years earlier such concessions might have sa\ed the 
colonies, but the time for them was past. During the 
coarse of the session, the feeling of dissatisfaction with 
tne ministry increased. All eyes turned to Chatham as the 
one man who might perchance save the nation. To defeat 
France and to concihate America were both tasks for 
which in earlier days he had shown his fitness. It was 
not fated that his powers should be tried again. On the 
7th of April he was borne fainting from the House of Lords, 
and in a few weeks later he died. It may well be doubted 
whether, even if he had lived, and if all things had favoured 
him, he could have contrived at once to conciliate the 
.Americans and to retain their allegiance. Though he 
asserted strongly the necessity of doing both, yet he does 
not seem himself to have seen any way in which they 
could be done. The schenie of conciliation which he pro- 
posed in 1775 might then have been successful, but in 1778, 
even the vigour of his last days could hardly have done 
more than prolong the struggle. 

14. Campaign of 1778. — The operations of these two 
years were marked with little that was striking on either 
side. The Americans were weakened by internal jealousies 
and divisions. A party hostile to Washington had sprung 
up in the army, headed by one Conway. They attempted 
to injure Washington by contrasting his indecisive opera- 
tions with the brilliant success of Gates. Gates, who 
seems to have been a weak and vain man, at least sanc- 
tioned, if he did not encourage, this intrigue. The same 
spirit of division showed itself in Congress. "For God's 
sake,'' Lafayette wrote from France, " prevent the Congress 
from disputing loudly together ; nothing so much hurts 
the interest and reputation of America." Washington drew 



XIX.] BRITISH SUCCESSES hV THE SOUTH. 269 

an equally lamentable picture of the state of affairs at 
Philadelphia. Writing thence he says, " Speculation, pecu- 
lation, and an insatiable thirst for riches, seem to have 
got the better of every other consideration, and of almost 
every order of men ; party disputes and personal quarrels 
are the great business of the day." This was partly due 
to the fact that the various states were so occupied with 
their own affairs, and with the formation of their own 
governments, that the best men were serving in State offices, 
instead of in Congress. The American finances too were in 
a desperate state. The notes issued by Congress had fallen 
to less than one-thirtieth of their nominal vahie ; so that, 
as Washington said, a waggon-load of money could scarcely 
purchase a waggon-load of provisions. The British generals 
took no advantage of the demoralized state of their enemies. 
During the spring of 1778 the British remained inactive at 
Philadelphia ; and in June they abandoned that city, and 
gathered together their forces at New York, to be ready 
for an invading force from France In the West, small 
bands of Tories and Indians wrought great damage, de- 
stroying whole villages, and doing much to irritate, though 
nothing to subdue,' the Americans. During the jear the 
French alliance bore but little fruit. A fleet was sent out 
under Admiral d'Estaing ; but, after staying for some time 
in Boston Harbour, it sailed off to attack the British in 
the West Indies. A scheme proposed by Lafayette lor 
the invasion Oi' Canada was rejected by Congress. The 
French themselves did not look favourably upon this 
scheme ; and it is noteworthy that throughout the war 
they showed no wish that Canada should be taken from 
the British : this, no doubt, was because the French thought 
it better for themselves that all Northern America should 
not be .united under a single government. 

15. British Succesess in the South. — Clinton, who in 



270 THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

the spring of 1778 succeeded Howe in command of the 
British forces, resolved to attack the Southern states. 
Hitherto, since the opening year of the war, they had 
been left unassailed. Clinton thought that they would be 
therefore less prepared for an attack than the Northern 
colonies. At the same time, as their resources had not 
been much impaired, the Americans depended mainly on 
tb.em for supplies, and thus Clinton hoped that a blow there 
would be specially felt. At first results seemed to make 
good Clinton's hopes. In November 1778 a small force 
under Colonel Campbell took Savannah, drove the Ameri- 
can forces out of Georgia, and brought the whole of that 
state under the British government. Campbell was soon 
after succeeded by General Prevost. He carried the war 
into South Carolina, defeated General Lincoln, one of the 
ablest of the American commanders, and seized Port Royal, 
an island favourably placed for an attack on Charlestown. 
In the autumn of 1779, Lincoln was joined by D'Estaing, 
with a land force of about 5,000 men, and they proceeded 
to attack Savannah. All attempts, however, to take the 
place, by bombardment, storm and blockade, were alike 
unsuccessful ; and in November D'Estaing departed from 
America. During this time other attacks were made by 
the British on Virginia and the other middle states. 
Much damage was done, and many places were taken, but 
Washington refused to be led into a pitched battle, and 
no decisive blow was struck. The only set-off against 
these British successes was the capture of Stony Point, 
by Wayne, an American general. This place had been 
lately taken from the Americans. Wayne, by a forced 
march, reached the place, and carried it at the point of the 
bayonet. Though the British soon recovered Ston-y Point, 
yet Wayne's success seems to have done a good deal to 
encourage the Americans. In the spring of 1780, the 



XIX.] ARNOLD'S TREASON. 271 

British, commanded by Clintoa himself, attacked Charles- 
ton. The commander of the American fleet, instead of 
waiting to oppose the British at the mouth of the harbour, 
sank some of his ships to block the entrance, and retreated 
with the rest. The British fleet made its entrance with- 
out much difficulty; and on the nth of May the place 
surrendered. The garrison were allowed to march out with 
the honours of war. Congress now sent Gates to take 
command in the South. The success which attended him 
in the North now deserted him, and he was utterly defeated 
by Lord Cornwallis, whom Clinton had left in command. 
Other smaller actions took place, in all of which the British 
were successful. It seemed as if the British had com- 
pletely mastered the Southern states. But, as in New 
Jersey in 1777, it was soon seen that it was easier for the 
Knglish to conquer than to hold. Cornwallis and Lord 
Rawdon, who was next in command, both enraged the 
Americans by their harsh treaimcnt of those who had 
opposed the British government. It must be said, in pallia- 
tion of their severity, that many of the Americans showed 
an utter want of honesty in gettirg protections from the 
British commanders as loyal sulDJects, and then serving 
against them ; prisoners too who were on parole carried on 
a secret correspondence with the Americans in arms. 

16. Arnold's Treason,— In the North, the chief event 
of the year 1779 was the utter and ignominious dex^eat of 
an American force which had attacked a newly-formed 
British post at Penobscot. A fleet of thirty-seven ships 
had been prepared at considerable expense by the state 
of Massachusetts, and placed under the command of one 
Saltonstall. At the first sight of the British fleet he fled, 
and then, finding escape impossible, blew up the whole of 
his ships, save two which were captured. During the 
spring and summer of 1780 no important operations took 



272 THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

place in the North ; but later in the year the Americans 
narrowly escaped a very severe blow. Arnold, who had 
so distinguished himself before Quebec and against Bur- 
goyne, was in command of a fort called West Point, on 
the Hudson. As it commanded that river, the place was 
of great importance. Various circumstances helped to make 
Arnold dissatisfied and disaffected. He had been tried 
by court-martial on the charge of having used his official 
power to extort money from citizens, and of having applied 
public funds and property to his own uses. On the last 
of these charges he v/as found guilty. Moreover his ex- 
travagant habits had got him into difficulties. This, and 
the feeling that his services had been undervalued, led hirn 
into the design of going over to the British. The agent 
appointed by the British to arrange the treason was 
Major Andre, a young officer of great ability and promise. 
Everything was in train for the surrender of West Point, 
when Andre was captured -within the American lines with 
a pass from Arnold. Papers found upon him disclosed the 
plot. Arnold had got warning before he could be seized 
and fled down the Hudson in a swift rowing-boat. Andr^ 
was tried by court-martial and hanged as a spy. This 
sentence was fully approved by "Washington, who resisted 
all attempts to lighten the sentence. By some the execu- 
tion of Andre has been I'eckoned a serious blot on the fame 
of Washington and of the Americans. He, it is said, was 
acting as an authorized agent, under a flag oi truce, and 
with the formal protection of Arnold, and so was entitled 
by the laws of war to pass in safety. On the other hand, 
it has been urged that the purpose for which he came, 
that, namely, of arranging an act of treachery, deprived 
him of all such rights ; and that Arnold's protection was 
worthless, as being given by one whom Andre and the 
British knew to be a traitor. The Americans offered to 



XIX.] MUTINY OF THE AMERICAxY TROOPS. 273 



release Andre on one condition : viz., that Arnold should 
be surrendered in his stead ; but the British would not 
hear of this. During the rest of the war Arnold served 
in the British army, but with no great distinction. 

17. Mutiny of the American troops — Arnold's treason 
was not the only danger of that kind which threatened the 
Americans. On New Year's day, 1781, thirteen hundred of 
the troops in Pennsylvania, wearied by want of food, clothing, 
and pay, and by the indifference of Congress to their com- 
plaints, broke into open mutiny, killed two of their officers, 
and declared theii purpose of marching to Philadelphia to 
obtain their rights by force. Washington, who understood 
the justice of some of their demands and the extent of their 
pi'ovocation, sent instructions to General Wayne, who was 
in command in Pennsylvania, not to resist the mutineers by 
force, but to get from them a statement ot their grievances. 
At the same time he persuaded Congress to send commis- 
sioners to conter with the mutineers. One of their grievances 
was that they were not relieved from service, though the 
period lor which they had enhsted had expired. On this 
point the commission gave way, though by doing so they 
ran the risk of weakening the American forces. Some of the 
mutineers took their discharge, but most of them returned to 
service. Sir Henry Clinton had supposed that this would 
be a favourable opportunity for drawing away the discon- 
tented forces trom their allegiance, and sent two messengers 
to treat with them. But, so far from listening to these pro- 
posals, the mutineers seized the messengers and handed 
them over to the American commander, by whom they were 
put to death. The spirit of disaffection seemed likely to 
spread, and another mutiny broke out in New Jersey. This 
time however the government was prepared. A lorce of 
six hundred men held in readiness, against such an emer- 
gency, was sent against them. The mutineers were taken by 



2 74 THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

surprise, and two of the ringleaders tried by court-martial 
and shot. This put an end for the present to all outward 
show of disaffection. 

1 8. Surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown. — For a while 
CornwaUis followed up his success at Charleston. His plan 
was to leave Lord Rawdon in command in South Carolina, 
and to march through North Carolina and Virginia, so as to 
ioin Clinton in New Yorlc To do this it was necessar}' tc 
take a line of march a considerable distance from the sea. 
where the streams were small enough to be easily crossed. 
This cut him off from all communication with the coast, and 
forced him to march through a country ill-provided with 
supplies and difficult of passage. In his march through 
Carolina he was opposed by the American forces undet 
General Greene. This man, a Quaker by religion and a 
blacksmith by trade, had served as a private soldier in the 
early years of the war, and had risen by merit to the com- 
mand which he now held. Unlike Gates, he stood high in 
the confidence and esteem of Washington. He showed 
considerable skill in his opposition to Cornwallis. In an 
engagement between some irregular American troops under 
General Morgan, and a part of Cornwallis's army urd;r 
Colonel Tarleton, the British were deteated with considei'- 
able loss, but in a pitched battle soon after at Guilford the 
British, though greatly outnumbered, were after a stubborn 
contest successful. Cornwallis however, like Howe in the 
middle states, had other foes beside the American soldiers to 
deal with. Even those inhabitants who professed themselves 
loyal showed no zeal or energy in supporting him. Horses 
could not be got, and thus Cornwallis was compelled to 
destroy all his waggons but four kept tor the sick, and all 
his stores except those absolutely needed for the bare support 
of his men. In the meantime the Americans had receiwd 
a great addition of strength. In July, 1780, a French fleet 



xtx.] SURRENDER OF CORNVVALLIS. 275 

arrived, with a force of six thousand soldiers on board. 
Thus strengthened, in the spring of 178 1, Washington was in 
a position to strike a decisive blow, and he felt that such an 
effort was needful to restore the spirits and confidence of his 
countrymen. For a time he doubted whether to attack 
Clinton at New York, or to march southwards against Corn- 
wallis. The arrival of a fresh fleet of twenty-eight ships 
from the West Indies, probably decided him to adopt the 
latter course. For a considerable time Washington made 
as if he would attack New York, so as to deter Clinton 
from marching southwird to join Cornwallis, and when 
the American and French forces at length set out towards 
Virginia, Clinton for a while regarded their march as a mere 
feint. Meanwhile Lafayette had been sent against Corn- 
wallis, not to engage in a f)itched battle, but to harass him 
and hinder his movements. In this Laiayette succeeded. 
In September Washington marched into Virginia with a 
force of some twenty thousand men, against seven thousand 
under Cornwallis. The position of Cornwallis was not unlike 
that of Burgoyne at Saratoga. He was stationed at York- 
town on the York River. The chief advantage of this posi- 
tion was that it might enable Clinton's .orce from New York 
to join him by sea. But Clinton was delayed for a fortnight 
in setting out, and, as in Burgoyne's case, arrived too late to 
be of any service. On the ist of October, Cornwallis found 
himsel. completely surrounded by land, and cut off from the 
sea by the French fleet. Many of his troops were rendered 
useless by sickness, and a desperate attempt to cross the 
Bay and force his way northward to New York was stopped 
by a storm. The enemy too were well supplied with heavy 
artillery, and the slender earthworks of Yorktown gave no 
shelter against their fire. A sally, in which two of the 
American batteries were destroyed, only to be at once re- 
paired, showed the hopelessness of Cornwallis's position, and 

T 2 



2 76 THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. [chap. 

on the 17th of October he surrendered. This great defeat 
was in reahty the conclusion of the war. Petty hostilities 
were carried on during the summer of 1782, but the defeat 
of Cornwallis left no question as to the final result. 

19. The American Navy. — Nothing has been said as yet 
of the American navy. As it took no part in any of the 
important operations of the war, it seems better to consider 
it separately. At the outset of the war the Americans were 
even less prepared by sea than by land. They had a militia, 
and their wars with the Indians and the French had given 
both officers and men some experience and skill. But at 
sea they had no such advantages. It is an easier matter 
too to drill and arm active and able-bodied men than to 
build a fleet. But, though there was no possibility of the 
yVmericans coping with the British navy, yet they were not 
altogether powerless on the seas. The ports of the northern 
colonies, especially of New England, had trained up a race ot 
hardy and experienced seamen. Piracy too was rife on the 
American coast and in the West Indies, and thus the 
Americans had sailors ready to hand, well fitted for privateer- 
ing service. Whenever the Americans attempted any com- 
bined operations by sea against the British, they failed, and, 
till the French fleet came to their help, their sea coast was 
almost at the mercy of the enemy. But a number of small 
vessels, some fitted out by Congress, others provided with 
letters of marque, did great damage to British traders. So 
■great was the terror which they struck that the rate of 
insurance, even for voyages between England and Holland, 
rose considerably. The most noteworthy commander was 
Captain Paul Jones, an Englishman by birth, but in the 
service of the American Government, who carried terror 
along the English coast, and even went so far as to burn the 
shipping in the harbour of Whitehaven. 

20. Conclusion of Peace. — Beside Cornwallis's defeat there 



XIX.] CONCLUSION OF PEACE. 277 

were other things to make England eager for peace. The 
country was now engaged in war with France, Spain, and 
Holland, an allied fleet had been in the English Channel, and 
had threatened the Irish coast. The news of the surrender at 
Yorktown reached England on the 25th of November, and 
two days later, at the opening of Parliament, the King 
announced the evil tidings and called on the nation for 
" vigorous, animated, and united exertions." This was the sig- 
nal for an attack on the Government, led in the Upper House 
by Shelburne, in the Lower by Burke. The latter scoffed at 
the folly of attempting to assert our rights in America, and 
likened it to the conduct of a man who should insist on 
shearing a wolf. Evil tidings from other quarters kept pour- 
ing in. Minorca, a British station and the best harbour 
in the Mediterranean, was in February surrendered to the 
French. In the same month Conway, who had been among 
the first to take up the cause of America in Parliament, 
brought forward a motion for giving over the war. Soon 
after Lord North, seeing that he could no longer reckon on the 
support of the House, resigned. His successor, Rockingham, 
died in the course of the year. Shelburne then became 
Prime Minister. He, like Chatham, whose follower and dis- 
ciple he professed himself, had spoken strongly against 
separation, but now he felt that the struggle was hopeless, 
and negotiations for peace went forward. There was little 
to hinder the settlement of terms. America only wanted in- 
dependence ; England sincerely wished for peace ; and each 
side was ready to grant what the other asked for. There 
were only two points on which there seemed likely to be 
any difficulty. The British Government was unwilling to 
give the Americans the right of using the Newfoundland 
fisheries, and also required that the American Govern- 
ment should compensate the loyalists for their losses during 
the war. On both these points the British Government 
finally gave way. A demand made by the Americans for 



278 THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. [CHA?. 

the cession of Canada was quietly abandoned. Crushed, 
though England was, there was no Hkehhood of her making 
such a concession. All the British territory however be- 
tween Georgia and the Mississippi was ceded, while, by a 
treaty made with Spain at the same time, England gave up 
the Mississippi and the province of Florida. The treaty 
was arranged, though not formally signed, without consulting 
the French Government. The treaty between France and 
America provided that neither should make a separate peace 
with England. The Americans got over this by making the 
treaty conditional only, and agreeing that it should not be 
formally signed till England and France had come to terms. 
The French not unnaturally thought this an evasion of the 
spirit, if not of the letter of their treaty. The Americans 
however justified themselves on the ground that the French, 
in their proposals for peace, had shown themselves indifferent 
to the advantage of America. No open breach however 
followed between the allies. On the 3rd of September peace 
was signed, and the United States of America became an 
independent power. 



CHAPTER XX. 

THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 

The articles of confederation finally settled {\) — shortcomings of the 
confederation [2)— disturbances in the army {t,)— insurrection in 
Massachusetts {d^— the Annapolis conveniion (5) — the Philadelphia 
■ convention {6)~the Federal constitution C])—tlie constitution put 
in fo)-ce (S) — Washington elected president (9) — growth of two 
parties {10)- -retirement and death of VVaihington (n) — fohn 
Adams el cted president (12) — defeat of the Federals (13)— «^i» 
States (14). 

I, The Articles of Confederation finally settled. — As we 
have seen, the Articles of Confederation, although settled by 



XX. J SHORTCOMINGS OF 1 HE CONFEDERATION. 279 

Congress in 1777, were not accepted by all the states till 
1 78 1. The main hindrance to their acceptance was the claim 
of some of the larger states to unoccupied lands. Some of 
the old grants from the English crown reached to the South 
Sea, that is to say, they were practically unlimited towards 
the west. Six states were likely to profit by this — Virginia 
most largely — at the expense of the remaining seven, of 
which Maryland, Delaware, and New Jersey stood out most 
strongly against the claim of the " land states " to retain 
their western territory under the Confederation. New Jer- 
sey and Delaware soon yielded for the sake of union. May, 
1779, the delegates from Maryland having been mstructed by 
their governinent, demanded that, as the territory in ques- 
tion had been and still must be defended at the commoii 
cost of all the states, it should be relinquished to the Con- 
federation, both to help pay the war debt, and to prevent 
the undue aggrandizement of one state, Virginia. This at- 
titude Maryland held for nearly two years. In 1780, how- 
ever, New York, first of all the " land states," took the pa- 
triotic step of freely relinquishing its western territory to the 
Confederation. This was enough for Maryland, which rati- 
fied the articles, in confidence that Virginia would, as she 
did, follow New York\n this action, and on the ist of March, 
1 78 1, the Confederation was complete. 

2. Shortcomings of the Confederation. — The history of 
the war has served in a great measure to show the short- 
comings of the Confederation. These mainly came from one 
great defect ; its inability to force the citizens to comply with 
its wishes. After the war this was even more felt. Congress 
had no power of maintaining an army or navy, no control 
over trade, no means of raising public funds, and no mode of 
enforcing its will but by an appeal to arms. In the words of 
Washington, it was " httle more than a shadow without 
the substance." Moreover, from its want of power, it was 



sSo THE FEDERAL C0NSTITUT10A\ [ciiap. 

despised and neglected by those who should have been its 
chief supports. The ablest men were occupied with the 
politics of their own states. Congress consisted of little 
more than twenty members. The evils of this were soon 
seen. In 17S6, after some difficulty, twelve states assented 
to a general system of import duties. The thirteenth how- 
ever, New York, resisted, and thus one state was able to 
hinder a measure which was needful for the credit and security 
of the whole nation. So too articles in the treaty with 
England were set at nought by the dil'icrent State Govern- 
ments. The treaty provided that all debts incurred up to 
that time between citizens of either country should still hold 
good ; that no person should suffer any loss or damage for 
any part which he might have taken in the war. Laws however 
were passed by the various State Legislatures in direct de- 
fiance of these articles, and all that Congress could do was 
to exhort them to annul these laws and to comply with the 
treaty. Congress too showed itself unable to deal with 
great questions such as were sure to come before a National 
Government. The inhabitants of the Southern States, and of 
the newly opened western territory, held that it was of the 
greatest importance to keep the right of navigating the Mis- 
sissippi. Spain, which possessed the lower waters of the river, 
refused to grant this right, and, in the negotiations which 
followed, Congress was thought to show a want of spirit and 
an indifference to the welfare of the nation. 

3. Disturbances in the Army. — Moreover, there were signs 
of disat'fection which showed that the hands of Government 
needed to be strengthened. In 1781, as we have seen, the 
inattention of Congress to the wants of the army had led to 
a mutiny. In the next year a proposal was made by a 
colonel in the army, representing, as he himseh professed, a 
large number of his brother officers, to make Washington king. 
The defence for this oroposal was the alleged weakness of 



XX.] DISTURBANCES IN THE ARMY. 281 

the Government. Though Washington met the proposal with 
a prompt and utter refusal, he accompanied this with a pro- 
mise to do all that he could to secure the just claims of the 
army. In spite of the mutiny and of repeated warnings given 
by Washington, Congress showed an utter want of liberality, 
and even of honesty and justice, in its dealings with the army. 
In 1780, after many difficulties and great discussion, Con- 
gress promised the officers at the end of the war half-pay fdr 
life. But after the acceptance of the Articles of Confede- 
ration, no provision was made for carrying this engagement 
into effect, and propositions for commuting the half-pay on 
terms advantageous to the Government were defeated in Con- 
gress, while the current pay was left in arrears. A meeting 
of the officers was held, and an address was issued, setting 
forth the gross injustice of this breach of contract, and. Taut 
for the courage and wisdom of Washington, it is likely that a 
mutiny would have broken out, fatal perhaps to the newly- 
gained freedom of America. In the end the officers for- 
warded a temperate remonstrance, and Congress passed a 
resohition granting them five years' full pay after the disband- 
ing of the army. An event which followed soon after showed 
the unreasonable distrust with which the nation regarded 
that very army whose toil and sacrifices had saved it. A 
society was formed, called the Cincinnati, to consist of the 
officers who had served in the war and their descendants. 
This was to be a Iriendly association to keep alive among the 
members the memory of their joint service, and to establish 
a fund for the relief of its poorer members, their widows and 
orphans. Washington consented to be the first president of 
the society, and this fact, it might have been thought, was a 
safeguard against any danger. Yet so strong was the popular 
dread of a military despotism that the establishment of the 
society met with wide-spread disapproval. So violent was 
the attack that Washington thought it necessary to persuade 



2S2 THE FEDERAL CONSTItUTlOlf. [chap. 

the members to do away with hereditary membership, and to 
alter other features in the scheme. Even so pubhc displea- 
sure, though lessoned, w.is not aliogeiher removed. 

4. Insurrection in Massachusetts. — Besides the supposed 
danger from the army, there were other and better founded 
causes of fear. No state had suftered more by the war than 
Massachusetts. Its tisheries and its commerce were de- 
stroyed. Ta.xes had increased, while the means of paying 
them had lessened, and. as was natural in a time of distress, 
private debts had acciunulated. Thus there came into being 
a distressed and discontented class, ready for any change. 
Public meetings were held at which the doctrine was laid 
down that property ought to be common, because all had 
helped equally to prevent it from being contiscated by the 
English Government. The malcontents also proposed to do 
away with the State Council, and to abolish all taxes. In 1786 
an open insurrection broke out, and fifteen hundred men took 
up arms headed by one Shays, who had served as a captain 
in the late war. Through the firmness and courage of the 
governor, James Bowdoin, the insurrection was suppressed, 
but the most alarming thing was that Congress, although it 
raised troops in case such an emergency should again arise, 
yet did not venture openly to declare the object for which 
these troops were enlisted. In short, it dared not assert either 
the will or the power to deal with a rebellion. 

5. The Annapolis Convention.— In this state of things, 
thoughtful men began to see that, if the United States were to 
exist as a nation, there must be a central Government with 
direct power both in internal and external afiairs ; able to 
carry on foreign negotiations in the name of the nation, to 
issue commands to the citizens of the state, and to enforce 
these commands, if necessary, and to punish those who 
neglected them. The first man clearly to perceive, and 
boldly to declare this, was Alexander Hamilton, one of the 



XX. J THE ANNAPOLIS CONVENTION. 283 

most far-seeing and courageous statesmen that any country 
' . er produced. He had already distinguished himself in the 
tr as aide-de-camp to Washington, and at a still earlier 
tirne by a series of essays on the rights of the colonies. But, 
though he had been among the most ardent supporters of 
American independence, no one saw more clearly the dangers 
of the new system. So highly did he value a strong central 
Government, that frequently through his life he was de- 
nounced by his countrymen as the advocate of monarchy, 
and the enemy of his country's liberties. This charge was 
without the least foundation, Hamilton did indeed believe 
that the English Government was in itself, and where it was 
possible, the best system, but he saw as clearly how unfitted it 
was for America, He wished his countrymen to copy, not the 
monarchical form of government, but so much of the English 
system as would make the constitution stable and lasting. 
In 1785 an opportunity offered for introducing such a change 
as he wished for. In the spring of that year commissioners 
were appointed from Virginia and Maryland to settle certain 
difficulties about the navigation of the Potomac river and 
Chesapeake Bay. They met at Mount Vernon, Washington's 
house, and there a plan was proposed for maintaining a fleet 
on the Chesapeake, and for settling commercial duties. This 
led to the proposal made by the Assembly of V^irginia for a 
general conference of commissioners from all the states to 
consider the state of trade. Hamilton saw that this confer- 
ence might be made the instrument of wider changes, and he 
pursuaded New York to send commissioners, himself among 
them. In 1786 commissioners from five states met at An- 
napolis in Maryland. Hamilton laid beiore them a report, 
givmg reasons why it would be well if a convention of delegates 
from ail the states should meet to consider the state of the 
National Government. The proposal was adopted. It might 
have seemed easier and more natural to refer the matter to 



284 THE FEDERAL COiVSTITUTIOiV. [chap. 

Congress, rather than to form a special body for this one object. 
But Congress no longer represented the strength and wisdom 
of the nation, and it was generally felt that the task would 
be beyond it. On the other hand, it shows the wisdom of 
those who proposed the great measure that they so carried 
it out as not to weaken the authority of the existing Govern- 
ment, that they did nothing to sweep away, or even to weaken, 
the old constitution till the new was ready. 

6. The Philadelphia Convention. — In 1787 the Conven- 
tion met at Philadelphia. It is scarcely too much to say 
that no body of men ever met together for a task of such 
vast importance to the welfare of mankind, or needing so 
much the highest powers of statesmanship. The President 
of the Convention was Washington. At the end of the war 
he had retired into private life, and had ardently believed and 
hoped that his career as a public man was over. So strongly 
did he wish for privacy that he at first declined the presidency 
of the Convention. But the insurrection in Massachusetts 
showed him the dangerous condition of the country, and the 
need which she had for the service of every loyal and able 
citizen, and he accepted the post. In sending delegates to 
the Convention each state seems to have put out its utmost 
strength. Several of the ablest public men were abroad on 
foreign missions. With these exceptions but one prominent 
statesman was away. Patrick Henry's absence was fortu- 
nate, as he was opposed to changes in the government. The 
mere summoning of a Convention implied that something 
was to be done, and it was no place for those who were 
against all change. Hamilton, though he was in a great 
measure the cause of the Convention being called together, 
and though he afterwards by his arguments did much to get 
the new constitution accepted, yet had little to do with 
framing it. He differed widely in his views from the great 
bulk of the nation, and he seems to have seen the hopeless- 



HI 



^> 






->« 



> '-Xt 5 > V i7s' 





XX.] THE PHILADELPHIA CONTENTION: 285 

ness of any attempt to force his opinions upon it. The man 
who was, above all others, the author of the constitution was 
James Madison, of Virginia. He was a man of pecuUarly 
moderate temper, able to understand both sides, and to sym- 
pathize in some measure with each, and he was therefore 
specially fitted to deal with a question which could only be 
managed by a compromise. For it must never be forgotten 
that the American Constitution did not represent what any 
one party considered the best possible system, but was framed 
by each party yielding something. The difficulties before the 
Convention were various. First, there was the one great ob- 
stacle, the wide difference of opinion as to what the new Gov- 
ernment should be. Some wished to see it completely over- 
ride the various State Governments. This view was express- 
ed by Gouverneur Morris, one of the ablest of Hainilton's 
supporters, who openiysaid that he regarded the State Govern- 
ments as serpents whose teeth must be drawn. Others were 
opposed to anything which could tend even to weaken the 
State Governments. Besides this, there were other, though 
perhaps lesser, difficulties. All except the men of extreme 
views felt that there must be a strong central Government, 
able at least to conduct the foreign afiairs 01 the nation and 
possessing such authority over the citizens as was needful 
for that purpose. At the same time all wished to pre- 
serve the State Governments. To combine these two objects 
was no easy matter. The difierences between the various 
states greatly increased the difficulty. Some depended on 
trade, others on agriculture. Here everything was done 
by iree labour, here by slaves. Moreover, the lorms of 
law procedure and the rules as to the right of voting were 
different in the different states. Above all was the great 
difficulty of dealing with small and large states, of giving 
due weight to the former without sacrificing the latter. All 
these difficulties could only be got over by some system 



286 THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. [chap. 

of compromise, by a constitution, that is to say, which should 
in ahiiost every point fall somewhat short of what each party 
would consider the best probable plan. Even so, nothing 
but a strong sense of the evils from which the nation was 
suffering, and of the dangers of its present condition, could 
have led the different parties to make such sacrifices of their 
own wishes as were needful. On one point, and one only, 
were all agreed, namely, that the new Government must be 
republican and democratic ; that is to say, that the rulers 
must be chosen by the mass of the people, and be really 
answerable to the people for their conduct while in office. 

7. The Federal Constitution. — Two rough schemes were 
laid before the Convention, one by Edmund Randolph of Vir- 
ginia, the other by William Patterson of New Jersey. The 
former, which, with some changes, was finally accepted, rep- 
resented the views of those who wanted a strong central Gov- 
ernment, the Federal party, as they were afterwards called ; 
the other, those of their opponents. Hamilton also brought 
forward a scheme, but this went so far beyond the wishes and 
views of the mass of the Federals, that it met with no support. 
Finally Randolph's scheme was adopted, and the Convei^tion 
applied itself to casting it into shape. The result, with some 
changes, has continued to be the Constitution of the United 
States to the present day. The chiei provisions were as 
follows. The government was to be in the hasds of a President 
and Congress. Congress was to consist of two Houses, the 
upper called the Senate, the lower the House 01 Represen- 
tatives. In this the Convention was no doubt influenced 
by the example of the State Governments, and so indirectly 
by that of England. There was however this special 
advantage in having two Houses. It got over, as no other 
contrivance could have, the difficulty resulting from the 
difference of size between the various states. The mem- 
bers of the Upper House were to be elected by the State 



XX.] THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 287 

Legislatures, those of the Lower House bythe quahfied electors 
of the various states. But in the Upper House each state was 
to have two senators, in the Lower the number of representa- 
tives was to be proportioned to the population of the states. 
Thus the smaller states were not altogether put on an 
equality with their larger neighbours, nor altogether sub- 
jected to them. As in the Congress of the revolution, the 
question how the slaves should be reckoned in apportioning 
representatives gave rise to much discussion. Finally a 
compromise was adopted, and three-fifths of the slaves 
were counted as population. The power of making laws 
was entrusted to Congress, but the President's assent was 
necessary. If the President should refuse his assent to a 
measure, it was to be sent back to Congress, and if again 
passed by a majority of two-thirds in each House, it became 
law. The President himself was to be elected for four 
years. He was not to be directly elected by the people, but 
by electors chosen by the citizens in each state. This was 
introduced with the idea that it would secure a wiser and 
more deliberate choice than if the people voted directly. 
But in practice the electors have been chosen, not for their 
general ability, but simply to vote for this or that candidate. 
The number of electors for each state was to be equal to 
the number of senators and representatives together from 
that state. The manner of choosing these electors in each 
state was to be decided by the legislature of that state. 
In most states they were chosen by the mass of the 
citizens; in some by the State Legislature. If two can- 
didates lor the presidency got an equal number of votes, 
the House oi Representatives was to vote between 
them, voting, not singly, but by states. If no one received 
the votes of a majority of the electors, the House was to 
elect one out of the five highest on the list. There was to 
be a vice-president, who was to fill the president's place in 



288 THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. [chap. 

case of a vacancy. At first the vice-president was to be 
the second candidate for the presidency, but this was found 
to give rise to great confusion, and after 1804 the vice-presi- 
dent was chosen by a separate election, though upon the 
same system. All persons who were entitled to vote for 
members of the lower branch of the legislature in the state 
in which they lived, were to be entitled to vote for members 
of Congress and presidential electors. This provision en- 
abled the states to control the suffrage for national purposes, 
and thus to exclude free blacks. The president was to ap- 
point all public officers, and to be the commander-in-chief 
of the army and navy. The seat of Government was to be 
a neutral territory, not exceeding one hundred square miles, 
under the direct control of Congress. This district was 
granted by Maryland, and is known as the District of 
Columbia. The capital city is Washington. There was to 
be one supreme judicial court, presided over by a chief justice, 
who was appointed by the president for life. This supreme 
court was entrusted with the important task of dealing with 
all cases in which the enactments of Congress might clash 
with the enactments of the various State Governments. By 
this means one of the great obstacles to a confederation was 
got over. All disputes between the two conflicting powers, 
the central Legislature and the State Governments, were re- 
ferred to a body independent of each. Moreover, those who 
felt the danger of a democratic constitution valued this court 
as the one part of the Government which was not directly de- 
pendent on the people. On the other hand, thoroughgoing 
democrats like Jefferson looked on this as a mistake. 

8. The Constitution put in Force. — When the constitution 
was drawn up, the difSculties of its framers had little more 
than begun. The question at once arose, how was the con- 
stitution to be put in force .'' Congress had no power to grant 
away its own authority to a new- Government, nor had the 



XX.] WASIinVGTOiV ELECTED PRESIDENT. 289 



nation enough confidence in it to accept its decision. 
Accordingly the Convention resolved to lay it before the 
various states. The serious question then arose, what was 
to be done if some states accepted, some refused ? Finally 
it was decided that, if nine states accepted it, the constitution 
should take effect, and that, if any of the remaining states 
refused, they must be left out of the new confederation. 
Accordingly Conventions of the various states were sum- 
moned. The contest was a hard one. Great service was 
done to the cause of the constitution by a series of essays 
called the " Federalist." These were written by Hamilton, 
Madison, and a third Federal statesman, Jay. The struggle 
was most severe in New York and Virginia, but in both the 
constitution at length prevailed. In New York the result 
was mainly due to Hamilton. In Virginia Patrick Henry 
C-pposed it with the utmost animosity, and with the power 
and eloquence of his best days. It is even said that at one 
meeting he spoke for seven hours at a stretch. In justice 
to him, it should be said, as indeed it may be said of all the 
leading opponents of the new system, that, when the con- 
stitution was carried, they accepted it honestly and loyally. 
Henry in particular became conspicuous before his death as 
a supporter of the central Government against the rights of 
the separate states. Rhode Island and North Carolina held 
out the longest, and for a while remained outside the 
union ; but they too at length acceded. 

9 Vv'aahington elected President. — Washington, as all 
had foreseen from the outset, was called by the united voice 
ot" the nation to the presidency. It is hardly too much to 
say that, if he had not existed, the Federal Constitution would 
never have been accepted by all the states. In him the 
nation had a leader who commanded the love and confidence 
of his fellow-countrymen as no other man ever has. But for 
this extraordinary good fortune, it is unlikely that the 

U 



290 THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. [chap. 

American people, with its violent dread and hatred of 
monarchy, would ever have consented to the rule of a pi-esi- 
dent. The new Government did not long enjoy peace. In 
1787 hostilities had broken out between the inhabitants of 
the newly-settled western territory and the Indians there. 
As in such cases generally, there seem to have been acts of 
unprovoked and unjustifiable violence on each side. Forces 
were sent against the Indians in 1790 and 1791, but both 
were defeated with heavy loss. Both the commanders in 
those expeditions, General Harmer and General St. Clair, 
were tried for incapacity, but acquitted. In 1794 Wayne, 
who had distinguished himself in the War of Independence, 
was sent against the Indians. He defeated them in a 
decisive battle, and in 1795 they sued for peace. In this 
war the Government met with no small difficulty in enlisting 
an army. One party in Congress maintained that the war 
should be carried on solely by the border militia. Great 
inconvenience too was felt, as in the war with England, 
from the system of short enlistments. In 1794 an insurrec- 
tion broke out in Pennsylvania. This sprung out of the dis- 
content felt at the imposition of a duty on spirits. His first 
term closing, Washington was re-elected President. His 
second term of office was marked by still more serious 
difficulties. The relations of the States with England, 
France, and Spain were unfriendly. The English Govern- 
ment refused to quit some of the western forts, on the 
ground that the States had not fulfilled the terms of 
the treaty. John Adams was sent as envoy to England, 
and was well received by the King. But for a while the 
points in dispute remained unsettled. The Spanish Govern- 
ment refused the Americans the use of the lower waters of 
the Mississippi, and seized ships sailing there. Moreover 
there were disputes about the boundaries of the Spanish and 
American territories. The manner in which peace had been 



XX. ] GR WTH OF TWO PA R TIES. 29 1 



made had done something to sow the seeds of discord 
between England and France. The outbreak of the French 
Revolution served further to alter the relations between the 
two countries. The moderate party in the States stood 
aloof from the successful revolutionists, and looked upon the 
influence of that party in America as dangerous, while the 
Democrats, headed by Jefferson, were drawn more closely 
towards France. The war between England and France 
threw the relations of America to both nations into still 
greater confusion. 

10. Growth of two Parties. — Before going further, it should 
be said that two distinct political parties had now sprung up 
within the states. As we have seen, there was, at the time of 
the settlement of the constitution, a State rights party on 
the one side, and a Federal party, as it was called, on the 
other. The State rights party always denied the right of 
their opponents to the name of Federalist, declaring that 
they were equally in favour of a Federal Government ; that 
the real question was, which system was most truly federal, 
and that for one party to call themselves Federalists, and 
their opponents Anti-federalists, was begging the question. 
But the names, however incorrect in their origin, stuck to the 
parties, and so it is better to use them. The passing of the 
constitution in a great measure overthrew the Anti-federal 
party. But, as soon as the constitution was established, the 
old struggle was renewed in a slightly different form. The in- 
terpretation of the constitution, when it came to be applied to 
particular cases, was almost as important as the actual form 
of it. The Anti-federals, calling themselves Republicans, 
sought to restrict the central Government as much as possi- 
ble, and to interpret the constitution in the way most favour- 
able to the State Governments ; the Federals wished in every- 
thing to strengthen the central Government at the expense of 
the separate states. In this, there can be no doubt that the 

U 2 



292 THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. [chap. 

extreme men on each side, and most perhaps those of the 
Federal party, strove to stretch the constitution beyond what 
they must have known to be the wishes of its framers. It is 
important to understand clearly the origin and nature of 
these two parties, as the division between them runs on 
through all later American history, changing its form indeed, 
but still remaining in many important points the same. The 
Federal party was headed by Hamilton. Its main strength 
lay in the commercial states of the north and east, and espe- 
cially among the New York merchants. The other party, 
with Jefferson for its leader, drew its strength mainly from 
the southern planters. Washington could not be said strictly 
to belong to either party ; indeed, his neutrality was one of 
the points which gave the nation such confidence in him. 
His leanings however were towards the Federals. He had 
sought to do justice to both parties by appointing Hamilton 
and Jefferson to the Departments of Finance and Foreign 
Affairs, making them thereby his principal advisers. The 
first great subject on which the two parties joined battle was 
the question of a national bank. This was Hamilton's pro- 
ject. The Republicans were opposed to it, as throwing too 
much power into the hands of Government. They denied 
that the constitution gave the Goverament any power to form 
such an institution. Finally, the bank was established. An- 
other even more serious matter was the foreign policy of the 
Government. As was said before, Jefferson and his followers 
were the friends of France. Hamilton and the Federals, of 
England. Reckless charges were brought against each of 
these statesmen, and have been repeated since, accusing 
them of readiness to sacrifice the interest of America to that 
of the European nation whom they respectively favoured. 
But, whatever may have been the case with inferior members 
of the two parties, there can be no doubt that both Hamil- 
ton and Jefferson were above any such designs. Faults they 



XX.] RETIREMENT OF WASHINGTON. 293 

both had as statesmen ; but, widely as they differed in all 
things else, they agreed in serving their country faithfully, 
though on difierent principles and in different ways. The 
ill-feeling of both parties was strengthened by the reckless 
conduct of Genet, whom the French revolutionary Govern- 
ment sent as their representative to America. He sent out 
privateers from the American ports, and abused the Ameri- 
can Government openly for not breaking the existing laws of 
neutrality, where those laws favoured England at the expense 
of France. This served to inflame both parties. So vio- 
lent was the feeling called out among the Republicans that, 
but for Washington's firmness, they would probably have 
engaged the country in a war with England. A bill for 
stopping all trade with England was carried in Con- 
gress, and was only prevented from becoming law by the 
President's veto. In 1794, a treaty was made with England. 
Here too it was only Washington's influence which carried 
the question by a bare majority. 

II. Retirement and Death of Washington. — In 1797, 
Washington retired. Although his popularity was marred by 
the course he took about the treaty, yet he was pressed by 
many to stand for a third presidency, and he probably would 
have been elected if he had stood. But he steadily reiused, 
thereby setting a precedent which has been followed ever 
since. At the same time that he declined to stand, he issued 
a farewell address to his countrymen. He reminded them 
forcibly of the need for forgetting all distinctions and remem- 
bering only that they were Americans. " The name," he said, 
" oi American must always exalt the just pride of patriotism 
more than any appellation derived from local discrimina- 
tions." Following up the same line of thought, he pointed out 
that the difference between the northern, southern, eastern, 
and western states, so far from being causes for separation, 
were in reality only reasons for a closer union, since each 



294 THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. [chap.- 

quarter required to be helped, and to have its wants supplied, 
b}' the resources of the rest. After his retirement, Washington 
took no active part in public life, but employed himself with 
the management of his estates and with farming, in which he 
took great delight. In the next year the fear of a French 
war obliged the Government to make military preparations, 
and Washington was appointed commander-in-chief. The 
danger however passed over, and the rest of his life was 
spent in peaceful retirement. That however did not last 
long. In the next year, 1799, a cold brought on by exposure 
carried him off after a short illness. Not only in America, 
but in France and even in England, the news of his death 
was received with marks of public sorrow. The unpopu- 
larity which his foreign policy had brought upon him passed 
away, and did nothing to weaken the love, gratitude, and 
esteem, with which his countrymen have ever regarded his 
memory. Never in all history have such feelings been better 
deserved. From first to last, no selfish ambition, no desire 
for aggrandisement, had ever led him astray from the duty 
which he owed to his country. Successful leaders of revolu- 
tions have always been exposed to special temptations, and 
have seldom altogether resisted them. Few have been more 
tempted than Washington ; yet none has ev* passed through 
the ordeal so free, not merely from guilt itself, but even from 
the faintest suspicion of guilt. 

12. John Adams elected President. — The election of a 
successor to Washington was the signal fcr a severe struggle 
between the parties. Jefferson was brought forward as the 
representative of the Republicans, Adams of the Federals, 
After a close contest the latter was elected. The Federals 
started another candidate, Thomas Pinckney, of South Caro- 
lina. The bulk of the party wished to see Adams president, 
and Pinckney vice-president, but some of the Federals who 
were unfriendly to Adams, Hamilton, it was thought, among 



XX.] DEFEAT OF THE FEDERALS. 295 

them, supported Pinckney for the Presidency. The result of 
this manoeuvring was, that Jefferson came in second, and so 
was Vice-President. Before Washington's retirement, Jeffer- 
son and Hamilton had both left the cabinet. Adams could 
not have been expected to have much confidence in Hamilton, 
nor is it likely that Hamilton would have served under him. 
His position however, outside the cabinet, Avas in every way 
unfortunate and unsatisfactory. The members of Adams's 
cabinet were Hamilton's followers, and completely under his 
guidance. His influence was always separate from, and often 
hostile to, that of the President. At first however the pro- 
spects of the Federal party and of the Government looked 
bright. The conduct of the French Government was so 
outrageous as to disgust even those Americans who were 
naturally inclined to sympathize with France. When the 
news of the English treaty reached Paris, the American 
envoy was treated with gross disrespect. Commissioners 
were sent out from America in hopes of settling the diffi- 
culty. The Directory, then at the head of French affairs, 
told the commissioners through private agents that the good 
will of France could only be recovered by the payment of a 
sum of money. This demand created a great outburst of 
indignation in America, and a conflict seemed at hand ; 
though war was not formally declared, an American trigate 
attacked and captured a French one. France, seeing that 
America was really roused, drew back, and in 1800 a treaty 
was signed between the two nations. 

13. Defeat of the Federals. — The conduct of France served 
for a while to make the Federals popular at the expense of 
the Republicans. But this did not last long. Adams, thougli 
an honest and upright man and an able statesman, was vain, 
ill-tempered, and unconciliatory. Moreover, he natural! y 
resented the secret influence which Hamilton exercised over 
the cabinet. Before long, Adams was at war with his whole 



296 THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. [chap. 

cabinet, and the Federal party was hopelessly broken up. 
Its ruin was completed by the enactment of two most unpop- 
ular measures by Congress, the Alien Law and the Sedition 
Law. The former of these empowered the President to order 
out of the United States, at his own discretion, any alien 
whose presence he should judge dangerous. The Sedition 
Law enforced penalties on any person who published false, 
scandalous, or malicious writings against the Government, 
either House of Congress, or the President. Both these laws 
were generally felt to be opposed to the principles of the 
American nation, and they brought the Government into 
great disrepute. Moreover, the extreme Federals, led by 
Hamilton, were suspected of seeking to involve the country 
in a war with France. The French Government too became 
more moderate in its conduct. Thus a strong reaction sprang 
up in favour of the Republicans. Accordingly, when Adams 
again stood for the Presidency, he was beaten. The Republi- 
cans carried their two candidates, Jefferson and Aaron Burr. 
The latter was a profligate adventurer of bad character and 
associations. The intention of the Republicans was that 
Jefferson should be carried as President, and Burf as Vice- 
President. The two however were equal, and the House of 
Representatives had to vote between them. So bitter was 
the feeling among the Federals against Jefferson that most of 
them stooped to vote for Burr, and the two were again equal. 
The votes were taken thirty-four times with the same result. 
At last one voter went over, and Jefferson became President. 
It s-hould be said to the honour of Hamilton, that he op- 
posed this disgraceful intrigue against Jefferson. 

14. New States. —In 17S7 Congress made special pro- 
vision for the admission of fresh tates. This was of course 
necessary, as there was a vast territory to the west which 
was sure to be occupied sooner or later. The central Govern- 
ment was empowered to form districts called Tcrriioiles. 



XX. ] NE IV S TA TES. 297 



These were to be formed, either out of soil which the na- 
tion had acquired by treaty or otherwise, or out of land vol- 
untarily surrendered by any of the states. So long as any 
such district remained a Territory, however, Congress might 
add to or take from its extent, or annex it entire to another 
Territory, which Congress could not do with any state with- 
out its consent. These Territories were to be governed, each 
by its own inhabitants, but according to a set constitution, 
and were to have Governors appointed by the central Gov- 
ernment. When its number of inhabitants reached sixty 
thousand, it might then be admitted as a state, with the same 
rights as the older states, both as regards self-government 
and as a member of the Union. The first new state added 
to the Union was Vermont. This was a district to the north 
of Massachusetts lying between the rivers Hudson and Con- 
necticut. As early as 1760 disputes for its possession had 
arisen between New York and New Hampshire. The English 
Government decided in favour of New York, but the people 
of Vermont refused to acknowledge the claim. In 1777 they 
applied to Congress to be admitted to the confederation as a 
separate state. New York opposed this, and the application 
was refused. Accordingly Vermont remained for some years 
in an anomalous position, though nominally subject to the ju- 
risdiction of New York. There was some intriguing with ref- 
ei-ence to its being joined with Canada. After the adoption 
of the Constitution, Vermont applied for admission as a state. 
The request was granted ; New York accepted thirty thousand 
dollars as compensation, and in 1791 Vermont became one 
of the United States. The next state admitted was Ken- 
tucky. This was a district to the west of Virginia, which 
originally formed a part of that State and gradually- 
detached itself from it. Till about 1770 the country was 
only occupied by a few hunters and scattered settlers ; 
but in 1782 the population had so increased that the 



298 THE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. [chap. 

distance from the capital of Virginia was felt to be an 
. inconvenience. To meet this, a Law Court was estabhshed 
in the district, equal in power to that at Richmond. In 1785 
a convention was held which petitioned the legislature of 
Virginia to make the district into a separate state. This 
was done, and in 1792 the State of Kentucky was admitted 
to the Union. In 1785 the inhabitants of the north-west 
frontier of North Carolina wished to separate, and proposed 
to become a state under the name of Franklin. The matter 
however could not be settled at the time. In 1789 the legis- 
lature of North Carolina handed over the district in question 
to the United States. It was formed into a Territory, and 
seven years later it was admitted into the Union as the State 
of Tennessee. The treaty of peace with Great Britain gave 
to the United States a vast district between the Mississippi 
and the Alleghanies. All of this region which lay north- 
west of the river Ohio had, by an ordinance of 1787, been 
formed into a Territory, within which slavery was forever 
prohibited. Out of this district have since been formed 
five states, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin. 
Of these Ohio was admitted as a state in 1802. 

CHAPTER XXI. 

THE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 

yefferson p7-eside7it (i) — purchase of Louisiana (2) — war with Tri- 
poli (3) — Aaron Burr (4) — zoar with Great Britain (5) — itiva- 
sion of Canada (6) — 7iaval affairs (7) — the Creek war (8) — 
the destruction of Washington (9) — operations in the North (10) 
— defence of Neiv Orleans (ii) — treaty of Ghent (12) — the 
cotton-gin and the steamboat (13). 

I. Jefferson President. — The election of Jefferson marked 
the complete triumph of the Republicans. Jefferson made 
thirty-nine removals from office without cause, but these 



XXI.] PURCHASE OF LOUISIANA. 299 

were principally of persons who had been appointed in the 
last hours of Adams' administration. These appointments, 
known as the " midnight appointments," Jefferson regarded 
as a wrong to himself, and refused to consider the appointees 
as even candidates for the positions they held. Later Pres- 
idents however have, without any such excuse, followed his 
example. They have created vacancies simply to reward 
their own followers, and this has been shamelessly defended, 
on the plea that the conquerors are entitled to the spoils. In 
his opening address Jefferson laid down clearly the general 
principles of his party. He declared his intention of " sup- 
porting the state Governments in all their rights as the most 
competent administration for our domestic concerns, and the 
surest bulwark against anti-republican tendencies." At the 
same time he spoke of " the preservation of the general Gov- 
ernment in its whole constitutional vigour, as the sheet-anchor 
of our peace at home and safety abroad." He also spoke 
strongly of the folly and danger of any attempt at separa- 
tion, thereby differing widely from the champions of State- 
rights in later times. 

2. Purchase of Louisiana.— Soon after Jefferson took 
office. Napoleon, the First Consul, extorted Louisiana from 
the Spanish government This naturally alarmed the Ameri- 
cans. An active, ambitious, warlike nation, like France, 
was a far more dangerous neighbour than a worn-out power 
such as Spain. It was fortunate for America that the Repub- 
licans then in power had always striven to stand well with 
France. Jefferson, knowing that .the French Government 
wanted money, at once entered into negotiations for the pur- 
chase of the territory in question. After some discussion, the 
whole of Louisiana was bought by the Americans for $15, 000,- 
000. This arrangement was carried out by the President and 
his cabinet, and was ratified by the Senate. Grave doubts ex- 
isted as to the constitutionality of such an annexation without 



300 THE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. [chap. 

the prior consent of all the states. The nation however was 
too well pleased with the result to question the nature of the 
proceeding. The Spanish Government at first objected to 
the arrangement, and urged that it had given up Louisiana 
on the understanding that France should not part with it ; but 
France and America were both ready to enforce the arrange- 
ment by arms, and Spain gave way. In 1804 the southern 
part of the newly-acquired land was formed into a Territory, 
and in 1812 it was admitted as the State of Louisiana. 

3. War with Tripoli. — In iSoi the United States were 
engaged in their first foreign war. When the Federals came 
into power under Adams, the American navy was far too 
weak to protect the rapidly growing commerce of the coun- 
try. In spite of the opposition of the Republicans, who 
were hostile to everything which strengthened the hands of 
Government, much was done during Adams's presidency to 
put the navy on a better footing. The result 01 this was 
soon seen in the dealings of the American Government with 
the petty states on the coast of Barbary, namely, Tripoli, 
Alg'ers, Tunis, and Morocco. Pirates from these states, 
sanctioned, if not sent out, by their rulers, harassed the 
commerce of civilized nations. The rapidly-growing trade 
of America was especially exposed to these attacks, and 
accordingly the American Government, like some of the 
European Governments, secured its citizens against the 
pirates by a yearly payment to the rulers of the Barbary 
States. In 1800 the Dey of Algiers, presuming on the 
weakness of the Americans, ordered the captain of the ship 
which brought the yearly tribute to take an ambassador for 
him to Constantinople. As the ship lay under the guns of the 
fort, the captain dared not endanger her by refusing. In 
1801 the Pasha of Tripoli, thinking that his State had been 
treated with less respect than Algiers, threatened to declare 
war on America. Next year the Americans sent a fleet of 



XXI.] AARON BURR. 301 

four ships to pacify the various Barbary States, or if, as 
seemed likely, war had been already declared, to attack 
them. The American commander found on his arrival that 
the Pasha of Tripoli had declared war. During the year 
the Americans took several ships belonging to Tripoli, but 
struck no serious blow. Next year a fleet of six ships was 
sent out to the Mediterranean under the command of Morris, 
to blockade Tripoli. In 1805 the naval operations were as- 
sisted by a land force under the command of Hamet Cara- 
malli. He was the elder brother of the reigning Pasha, but 
had been deposed, and had fled to Egypt. With a mixed 
force, officered in part by Americans, he marched on Derne, 
a town in the State of Tripoli, and took it. This was the first 
and only time that the American flag has ever been hoisted 
over any place in the Old World. Thus, threatened both by 
land and sea, the Pasha was glad to make peace. The terms 
granted him were liberal— in the opinion of many of the 
Americans, too liberal. No more tribute was to be paid, but 
the Pasha was to receive $60,000 as ransom for American 
prisoners. The claims of Hamet Caramalli, having served 
their turn, were forgotten. Immediately afterwards the Dey 
of Tunis threatened the American fleet with war, unless they 
restored a vessel which they had seized on its way into 
Tripoli. The American commander not only refused to do 
this, but told the Dey that no tribute would be paid in future. 
The Dey at first blustered, but, when the American fleet 
appeared before Tunis, he gave way entirely. These suc- 
cesses put an end, as far as America was concerned, to the 
disgraceful system of paying blackmail to the Mediterranean 
pirates. During the war great courage was shown in many 
cases by American officers and seamen, and the practice 
which they gained bore fruit in the ensuing war with Great 
Britain. 
4. Aaron Burr. — W'^e have seen how, through the intrigues 



302 THE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. [chap. 

of a section of the Federal party, Colonel Burr pressed 
Jefferson closely for the Presidency. In the spring of 1804 
Burr stood unsuccessfully for the governorship of New 
York. During the contest Hamilton used severe, though 
just language, about Burr. Burr challenged him ; they 
fought, and Hamilton was killed. Other American statesmen 
have done greater service to their country : none prob- 
ably ever understood the nature of its constitution so 
well as Hamilton, or foresaw so clearly the special dangers 
which lay before it. Burr was soon engaged in fresh mis- 
deeds. He was detected in a plot, the object of which has 
never been clearly discovered. He was found to be trans- 
porting troops and supplies to the southern valley of tb.e 
Ohio. It seems doubtful whether his object was to raise 
an insurrection in the West, or to make an independent and 
unauthorized attack on Mexico with the help of disaftected 
inhabitants of that country. He was tried on the first of 
these charges and acquitted. The second was then allowed 
to drop, as the Government probably felt that his schemes 
were completely discredited and his powet of mischief 
destroyed. He fled to Europe, and was no more heard of 
• in public life. 

5. War with Great Britain. — The election of Jefferson and 
the ascendency of the Republicans naturally drew the United 
States towards friendship with France, and enmity to Great 
Britain. The great European war, by crippling the resources 
both of England and France, threw the carrying trade into 
the hands of America, and rapidly increased the American 
merchant navy. A demand for sailors sprang up, and, to 
supply this, American merchant captains readily received 
deserters from the British navy. British commanders sought 
to recover these men, and thus a question arose as to the 
right of search — the right, that is to say, of British officers to 
search neutral vessels for deserters. The bitter feeling which 



XXI.] WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 303 

thus sprang up was increased by the fact that British com- 
manders were often unscrupulous in forcibly impressing 
American citizens. To such a length was this carried that 
it was believed that, before the end of the great European 
war, £c\eral thousands of American-born citizens had been 
pressed into the British navy. In 1807 a question of this kind 
led to a conflict between two vessels, the British Leopard and 
the American Chesapeake. The commander of the Leopard 
demanded to search the Chesapeake. The American captain 
refused. Thereupon the Z^^/f^r^ attacked, killing five men and 
wounding sixteen. The British captain carried off four men 
who were alleged to be deserters. Three of these were proved 
to be American citizens wrongfully claimed by the British. 
The British Goveinment made full amends, but the ill feeling 
created did not pass away. The growing commercial great- 
ness of the United States soon brought them into conflict, 
both with Great Britain and France. Each of these nations 
tried to injure the other by forbidding neutral vessels to enter 
the ports of its enemy. The American Government met this 
by laying on an embargo, forbidding all vessels to leave the 
American ports. This measure naturally annoyed the Ntw 
England merchants, and drove them even more than before 
into the ranks of the Federal party. At the same time the 
Government began to make active preparations for war. 

On the 1st of March, 1809, the general embargo was re- 
placed by an interdict on all trade with Great Britain and 
France. On the fourth of that month Madison succeeded 
Jefferson as President. He had taken a leading part in 
forming the Constitution and in pressing it upon the nation. 
He was therefore at that time known as a Federalist, and 
was one of the authors of the famous publication under that 
title. When the Constitution was adopted, Madison sought 
to restrict its operation within limits compatible with great 
freedom in the working of the State governments, and hence 



304 THE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. [chap. 

became known as a Republican, in opposition to the Feder- 
alists of that time. He had been Jefferson's Secretary of 
State, and was regarded as his political disciple, though a 
man of much more self-control and consistency of action than 
his predecessor. In 1810 France and Great Britain each 
professed its readiness to repeal the obnoxious decrees or 
Orders, if the other would do so first. Little by little Great 
Britain became more and more singled out by public senti- 
ment as the real enemy of the United States, instead of 
France, which had been equally injurious. This was due, 
first, to the manipulation of affairs by the Republican ad- 
ministration, which had a traditional leaning towards France, 
and secondly, to the fact that Great Britain, by her naval 
superiority, was able to enforce her decrees against Ameri- 
can commerce, while France could do so in only a small way. 
Another grievance was the complaint that English agents 
were stirring up disaffection in the border settlements and 
ntriguing with the Indians there. Moreover, in 181 1 Napo- 
leon withdrew his decree against commerce between England 
and America. No similar concession was made by the 
British Government. On the i8th of June, 181 2, the American 
Government, on the ground of the various injuries received 
from Great Britain, declared war. Five days afterwards, 
before that declaration reached England, the British Govern- 
ment withdrew its orders against commercial intercourse 
with France. Attempts were then made to restore peace. 
Each Government however stood firm on the one point of 
the right of search. In going to war on such trivial grounds, 
there can be no doubt that the Americans were influenced 
by their old sympathy and alliance with France, then en- 
gaged in her great struggle against the free nations of 
Europe. 

6. Invasion of Canada. — The Americans began the war 
with an attack on Canada. General Hull led the invading 



XXI.] nVVASION OF CANADA. 305 

. i 

force, composed of two thousand militia and five hundred 
regulars. The British were aided by an Indian force under 
Tecumseh. He was a Shawnee chief, a man of great ability 
and energy. He had gained great influence over the Indians 
and had made vigorous, and partially successful, efforts to 
restrain the Americans from encroaching on his countrymen, 
to wean the Indians from their habits of drunkenness, and to 
withhold them from selling their lands. Tecumseh had a 
brother called the " Prophet," a man fully as ambitious as 
himself, but far less wise. Under his leadership the Shawnees 
had in 181 1 attacked the settlers in Ohio and been defeated by 
General Harrison at a place called Tippecanoe, after a long 
and fierce engagement. But as this attempt had been made 
inTecumseh's absence and against his wishes, the failure had 
in no way weakened his influence. His alliance now was of 
much service to the British. Aided by him, Brock, the British 
commander in Canada, drove back the invading force into 
the town of Detroit, and there surrounded and captured them. 
A smaller American force soon afterwards made another 
attack on the Canadian frontier. This attempt also failed, 
and nearly the whole of the invaders were captured, but the 
British lost their commander. Brock Next year the attack 
on Canada was renewed, but with no great success. Several 
detached attacks were made, but one only effected its object. 
A force of two thousand men under General Dearborn de- 
stroyed the British town of York (now called Toronto). In 
all the other expeditions the Americans were deleated, in 
some cases with great loss. Finally, they concentrated their 
forces, numbering four thousand, for an attack on Montreal. 
Some trifling engagements followed, in which the British had 
the best of it, but nothing decisive was done. The British 
however were unsuccessful in their one attempt to push the 
war into the enemy's country. A British force of five hundred 
regulars and seven hundred Indians, well provided with 



3o6 THE WAR WITH GREAT BRITATN. [chap. 

artillery, under General Proctor, attacked Fort Stephenson 
on the north-west frontier. This place was held by Colonel 
Croghan with one hundred and thirty-three men. He refused 
to surrender, and beat oft" the assailants, killing one hundred 
and fifty of them and losing, it is said, only one of his own 
men. Later in the year the Americans were more successful. 
In September Commodore Perry, with nine vessels, defeated 
a British squadron of like size on Lake Erie. In the same 
year, General Proctor was defeated on the River Thames in 
Canada after a very slight engagement, in which Tecumseh 
fell. As a set-off against these defeats, the British took Fort 
Niagara, with large stores, and Buffalo, a village on the 
American frontier. 

7. Naval Affairs. — At sea the Americans were more suc- 
cessful than by land. Their fleet at the outset of the war 
was weak in numbers, containing only seven frigates and 
eight smaller vessels. But their officers were for the most 
part brave and skilful seamen, and the flourishing American 
merchant service gave the country the means of manning its 
regular navy quickly and well. The British navy, on the 
other hand, had become careless through continued success, 
and the press-gang system rendered the service unpopular 
and the men disaffected. In the first year of the war the 
Americans were victorious in four successive engagements 
between single ships. But in the spring of 1813 a British 
fleet of twenty sail entered the Chesapeake Bay. The Ame- 
ricans could not encounter so large a force, and it sailed along 
the coast, doing much damage. The most remarkable naval 
event of this year, and indeed of the whole war, was the fight 
between the Chesapeake and the Shannon. The Chesapeake 
was the same vessel that had been attacked by the Leopard 
six years before. She was a ship of thirty-eight guns, under 
the command of Captain Lawrence, and was fitted with every 
warlike appliance, but short of officers through sickness. 



XXI.] THE CREEK WAR. 307 

Her crew, moreover, had been aggrieved by some prize- 
money being withheld from them, and some of her officers 
were inexperienced. The Shannon was also a thirty-eight gun 
ship, commanded by Captain Broke. She had taken twenty- 
five prizes, every one of which Broke had destroyed, rather 
than weaken his crew by drawing out men to take charge 
of them. Her inferiority to the Chesapeake in fittings and 
resources was more than made up for by the courage of 
her captain and the high training atid seamanship of hor 
crew. During the spring Broke lay off Boston Harbour, 
waiting for an American vessel to come out. None came, 
and his supplies began to run short. At length he sent a 
written challenge to any of the American fleet, whereupon 
the Chesapeake bore down upon him and opened fire. After 
ten minutes the Shannon was laid alongside. The British 
boarded, and in five minutes, after a fight in which Lawrence 
fell, the Americans struck their flag. The American loss 
was forty-seven killed and ninety-nine wounded. On the 
British side twenty-ibur were killed and Broke Avith fifty- 
eight others wounded. After this affair, remarkable rather as 
a t)rilliant duel than for any real importance in its results, 
nothing noteworthy was done by sea on either side. 

8. The Creek War. — The year 1813 saw the Americans 
engaged with a fresh toe. The Creek Indians, led on by the 
influence and example of Tecumseh, made war on the south- 
western states. This was of interest and importance, not 
only for its own sake, but because it brought into public 
view one of the most remarkable men in American history, 
Andrew Jackson. The leader of the Indians was one VVea- 
thersford, a half-breed, a man second only to Tecumseh in 
ability and influence. The first place attacked was Yort 
Mimms, an outpost on the borders of Alabama. So little 
did the commander of this place expect an attack that, when 
a negro brought news of the Indian preparations, he was 

X 2 



3o8 THE IVAk WITH GREA T BRITAIN. [chap. 

flogged for raising a false alarm. A few hours afterwards 
the fort was attacked, and after a fierce fight was taken. 
Some of the garrison escaped, but out of five hundred and 
fifty occupants of the fort four hundred, including all the 
women and children, perished. Four hundred of the Indians 
also fell. Weathersford did his best to restrain the ferocity 
of his countrymen, but to no purpose. The south-western 
states at once raised forces for an Indian war. That from 
Tennessee was the first in the field. It was commanded by 
Andrew Jackson, a native of that state, whose ancestors 
had emigrated from the North of Ireland. He was now 
forty-six years old ; he was a lawyer by profession, and 
had been appointed judge of the Supreme Court in his 
own state. He had also served against the Indians, and 
was now appointed major-general of the Tennessee army. 
He was a man of great decision and energy, and considerable 
abihty, but wild iji his habits and liable to fearful outbursts 
of passion, which had frequently engaged him in disreputable 
quarrels. He was still suffering from wounds received in 
one of those affairs when he was called on to take the field 
against the Creeks. Nevertheless, he rose from his sick-tfcd 
and went forth at the head of two thousand five hundred 
men. A detachment of his force attacked and took a 
stronghold of the Indians called Tallushatches, and soon 
after Jackson himself defeated the enemy in a pitched 
battle at Talladega. After this a succession of mishaps 
seemed at one t me to threaten the army with destruction. 
A party of Indians who had come to make their submission 
and to ask for terms, were by mistake attacked and cut 
off. This made the Indians feel that there was no re- 
source but to fight it out to the last, and turned some who 
might have been friendly, or at least neutral, into enemies. 
Moreover it was midwinter, and the troops suffered both from 
the severity of the weather and from lack of provisions. 



XXI.] THE DESTRUCTION OF WASHINGTON. 309 

Jackson too was beset by the same difficulty as the com- 
manders in the revolutionary war. His men were only 
enlisted for short periods, and they claimed their discharge just 
when their services were most needed. Once they openly 
mutinied, but they were brought back by Jackson's prompt 
deahng and resolute bearing. At last they refused to advance, 
as it seemed, to certain starvation, and even Jackson had to 
yield. Supplies however came just when they were most 
wanted, and the troops were able to advance. In two skirmishes 
with parties sent out by Jackson the Indians had the best of 
it, but for more than two months nothing decisive was done. 
In March, Jackson advanced with his whole force, numbering 
about one thousand. The Creeks made their stand at a bend 
of the river Tallapoosa. During the delays caused by the dis- 
turbances in the American army the Indians had ensconced 
themselves in a strong log-iort. Their number of fighting men 
was about nine hundred. After a fierce fight the Indians were 
routed with great loss. This, called the battle of Tallapoosa, 
is generally looked upon as the blow which destroyed the 
last remnant of Indian power. In the meantime Governor 
Clayborne of Alabama had attacked and defeated an Indian 
force under Weathersford. Weathersford himself saved his 
life by leaping his horse into the river oft" a bluff fifteen 
feet high. By these two defeats the power of the Creeks was 
utterly broken. Some fled to Florida ; the bulk 01 the nation 
sued for, and obtained peace, surrendering more than half 
their territory to the American Government. This war was 
important in two ways ; firstly, as setting free the Southern 
States, and thereby enabling them to employ all their forces 
against the British invasion ; secondly, as being the first 
step in the career of Andrew Jackson, a man who probably 
had more influence on his country for good and evil than any 
President between Jefferson and Lincoln. 

9, The Destruction of Washington.— The beginning of 



3IO THE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. [chap. 

the campaign of 1 814 was disastrous to the Americans and 
not altogether creditable to the British. The settlement of 
peace in E irope enabled Great Britain to turn all her forces 
against America. But, instead of concentrating all its power 
in one great attack, the British Government aimed a succes- 
sion of blows at different points. In August a force of four 
thousand men under General Ross sailed into Chesapeake 
Bay. The commander of the American fleet, instead of oppos- 
ing their landing, burnt his ships and joined the land force. 
The Briti■^h thereupon decided to march on Washington. 
The force opposed to them consisted of one thousand regulars 
and five thousand militia. Instead of contenting themselves 
with harassing the British, for which they were better fitted, 
they drew up ready for a pitched battle at Bladensburg, a point 
covering Washington in the direction of the British advance. 
The British attacked and routed the Americans with small 
loss on either side. The precipitate flight of the militia on 
the first charge so weakened the defending force, that the 
commander decided to make no further effort to hold Wash- 
ington, and accordingly he evacuated the city. The British 
marched in and destroyed the Government property, includ- 
ing the Capitol, the President's house, and the national rec- 
ords ; a barbarous violation of the usages of war among civi- 
lized nations. Their next proceeding was to march on 
Baltimore. They were supported by a squadron of fifty sail 
under Admiral Cochrane, which sailed up the Patapsco river. 
The town was garrisoned with one thousand five hundred men, 
nearly all militia. Its chief defence was an outwork called Fort 
Henry, on the Patapsco. The land-force met with little resist- 
ance in its advance, although it lost its commander, Ross, in a 
skirmish. The fleet bombarded Fort Henry, but was unable 
either to silence the enemy's guns or to force its way past. As 
the land-force did not appear strong enough to make the attack 
unsupported the attempt was abandoned. In the meantime 



XXI.] DEFENCE OF NEW ORLEANS. 311 

the British had sustained a severe loss on the coast. Sir Peter 
Parker, a naval officer of much note, who was in command of a 
frigate in the Chesapeake Bay, had landed with a small force 
and had been killed by an outlying party of Americans. 

10. Operations in the North. — On the northern frontier 
the war had been carried on actively on both sides, but 
without any decisive result. In May the British took 
Oswego, an important place on the American side of Lake 
Ontario. In June the Americans renewed their attempt to 
invade Canada. They crossed near Niagara with three 
thousand five hundred men, captured Fort Erie, and de- 
feated the British at Chippeway. On the 25th of July 
they encountered the whole British force at Lundy's Lane, 
near Niagara. A fierce engagement followed with heavy 
and nearly equal losses on each side, but with no deci- 
sive result. The Americans kept Fort Erie for a while, 
but finally judging that they could not hold the place, they 
destroyed it and returned to their own territory. In Sep- 
tember Sir George Prevost, the Governor of Canada, made 
an attempt, somewhat like Burgoyne's, to invade the United 
States by way of Lake Champlain. He was supported by a 
fleet of seventeen sail. But a small American fleet under 
Commodore McDonough engaged the British fleet and utterly 
defeated it at Plattsburgh, near the northern end of the lake. 
Thereupon Prevost abandoned his attempted invasion. 

11. Defence of New Orleans. — By far the most important 
events of this war were those in the South. In the course of 
the summer of 18 14 it became known that the British were 
meditating an attack on the Southern States, probably at the 
mouth of the Mississippi. The defence was entrusted to 
Jackson, fresh from his victory over the Creeks. He found 
that the British had established themselves at Pensacola, in 
the Spanish territory of Florida. Jackson himself took up 
his position at Mobile, on the coast of Alabama. The chief 



312 THE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. [ch^.p. 

defence of Mobile was Fort Bowyer, on a point commanding 
Mobile Bay. On the 15th of September the fort was at- 
tacked by the British both by sea and land, but was gal- 
lantly and successfully defended by Major Lawrence. 
Jackson sent a ship to its relief, but the captain, hearing a 
terrific explosion, came back and told Jackson that the 
fort had fallen. The explosion in reality was caused by the 
blowing up of a British ship which had been set on fire by 
the guns of the fort. After this success, Jackson marched 
upon Pensacola and seized it, considering that the Spaniards, 
by harbouring the British, had forfeited their rights as 
neutral. The British now proceeded to attack New Orleans. 
Some doubts seem to have been felt on each side how far 
the French-born Louisianians would be true to the Ame- 
rican Union, of which they had lately become citizens. 
There seems to have been no ground for these suspicions, and 
the Louisianians were throughout loyal to their new Govern- 
ment. There was also the fear of a rising among the slaves. 
Moreover the American supply of arms was miserably in- 
sufficient ; but the strong will and courage of Jackson 
overcame or lightened every difficulty. On the 24th of 
November the British fleet of fifty sail anchored off the 
mouth of the Mississippi. Two plans of attack were open to 
the British : to ascend the river and attack New Orieans by 
water, or to land the troops and march on the city. To do 
the former it would have been necessary to destroy the forts 
which guarded the river, or at least to silence their guns. 
This was considered too difficult, and the British com- 
manders decided to attack by land. Accordingly, on the 
2 1st of December the British troops disembarked. They 
were opposed by a fleet of small vessels, but the British gun- 
boats beat these off, and the troops made good their landing. 
They were under the command of General Pakenham, a 
brother-in-law of the Duke of Wellington. He had shown 



XXI.] DEFENCE OF NEW ORLEANS. 313 

himself a brave soldier in the Peninsula, but had done 
nothing to prove his fitness for command where much skill 
and judgment were needed. He himself, with a considerable 
body of troops, did not arrive till some days after the 
landing of the first detachment. Till his coming the 
British troops, numbering about three thousand, were com- 
manded by General Keane. At first the Americans were 
ignorantof the exact position of the enemy, but on the 23rd 
they learnt that the British army was within nine miles of 
the city. The news was brought by a young planter, whose 
house had been seized by the British troops. All the rest 
of the household had been captured, and but for his escape 
the city might have been surprised. Jackson then marched 
out, and an engagement followed. After a whole night's 
fighting, during which the British were much harassed by 
the fire of two vessels in the river, the Americans retired. 
Keane, it has been thought, ought then to have marched 
straight on the city. Few men however would have ven- 
tured on such a step in the absence of their superior officer. 
Moreover, Pakenham was expected to bring up large re- 
inforcements, and Keane could not know that fresh troops 
were daily pouring into New Orleans and that Jackson's 
hopes were rising with every hour of delay. After this, 
Jackson stationed himself outside the city and threw up 
earthworks for its defence. Every man and horse that 
could be pressed into the service was employed. On the 
25th Pakenham arrived, and three days later an unsuc- 
cessful attack was made on the American works. Here, as 
before, the two American ships in the river greatly annoyed 
the British troops, till one was sunk and the other driven off 
by the enemy's guns. On the 8th of January the British 
made their general attack. They numbered seven thousand 
three hundred, the Americans twelve thousand. Pakenham 
sent a detachment across the river to seize the iorts on 



314 THE WAR WITH GREA T BRITAIiV. [chap. 

that side, which would otherwise have annoyed his main 
body by a cross fire. This attempt was completely success- 
ful, but the main body was defeated with terrific loss, and 
Pakenham himself fell. Jackson did not attempt to follow 
up his victory, and, after a few skirmishes between the 
outposts, the British embarked and sailed off. Though the 
war was in reality over and peace signed when this battle 
was fought, yet the victory was of great importance to the 
Americans. It saved New Orleans, a rich and populous 
city, from the horrors of a sack. Coming also immediately 
after the Indian war, and contrasted with the American 
defeat at Washington, it begot an enthusiastic admiration 
for Jackson which laid the foundation of his great political 
influence. 

12. Treaty of Ghent. — While this carnage was going on 
before New Orleans, the two nations were no longer at war. 
Commissioners from Great Britain and the United States 
had met at Ghent in July to discuss the terms of peace. 
These were easily arranged. Great Britain at first insisted 
that her right of impressing sailors on the high seas should 
be acknowledged by the Americans ; America insisted that 
it should be formally renounced. Each at length gave way 
on this point, and the matter was left as before. The British 
gave up their conquests on the Canadian frontier, so that the 
boundaries remained as they had been before the war. The 
Americans refused to admit the Indians who were allied with 
the British to a share in the treaty, but at length promised 
not to molest them. On the 24th of December peace was 
signed ; the terms of it are the best proof of the trivial 
grounds on which war was declared. 

13. The Cotton-gin and the Steam-boat. — Two mechani- 
cal inventions, made in America about this time, deserve 
special notice from the important effects which they at once 
produced. One was the cotton-gin, invented in 1793 by Eli 



XXI.] THE COTTON-GIN AND STEAM-BOAT. 315 

Whitney of Massachusetts. This was a machine for sepa- 
rating the fibre of the cotton, the part used in manufacture, 
from the seeds. Hitherto this had been done by hand. 
Machinery had already been contrived in England for the 
making of cotton goods, but its full use was hindered by the 
cost of the raw material. Before Whitney's invention but 
little cotton had been exported from the United States. In 
1794 a million and a half pounds were exported, and in the 
next year five and a quarter millions. The immediate effect 
of this in America was to call into life a new form of industry, 
cotton-planting. The warm swampy lands of the Southern 
States rose enormously in value, and at the same time the 
demand for slave labour was greatly increased. Soon after 
this, another invention was brought in, more wonderful than 
the cotton-gin, and far more remarkable in its effects on the 
whoie world, tliough not perhaps on America. This was the 
steam-boat, which was introduced into America by Robert 
Fulton of Pennsylvania. The idea of the steam-boat had 
been thought of by others, but Fulton was the first who suc- 
cessfully carried it into practice. His first steam-boat was 
launched on the Hudson in 1807. The great immediate effect 
of this was to increase immensely the importance* of the two 
main rivers of the United States, the Hudson and the Mis- 
sissippi. The Mississippi became more than ever the great 
line of communication, binding together the Southern and 
Western States. Some twenty years earlier Franklin had 
put forth emphatically the value of the Mississippi to the 
United States, declaring that to ask them to part with it 
was like asking a man to sell his front door. The inven- 
tion of the steam -boat gave double force to Franklin's 
words. 



3i6 SOUTH CAROLINA AND NULLIFICATION, [chap. 
CHAPTER XXII. 

SOUTH CAROLINA AND NULLIFICATION. 

Monroe presidifit (l) — John Qidncy Adams president (2) — the fiftieth 
anniversary of independence (3) — election of Jackson (4) — iiulli- 
ficatim (5) — the bank question (6)—grozvth of the Whig party (7) 
— Van Buren president (8) — difficulties between Amenca and 
Great Britain {9) — the Ashburton treaty (10) — neiu States (ll). 

1. Monroe President. — About this time the differences 
between the North and South began to make themselves 
felt. But as those differences and the conflicts that rose out 
of them, at least so far as they concerned slavery, form one 
connected chain of events ending in the War of Secession, 
it will be better to consider them separately, and to pass them 
over for the present, except when they are inseparably mixed 
up with the events of the day. In 1817 Madison was suc- 
ceeded as President by another Republican, Monroe. He 
was a man 'of no special power, who had served creditably 
in various public offices. He is best known by his assertion 
of what was called the Monroe doctrine of " America for the 
Americans." A rumour was afloat that the European powers 
intended to interfere to restore the authority of Spain in her 
revolted colonies in South America. Thereupon Monroe 
declared that he should consider any attempt on the part of 
European powers " to extend their system to any portion of 
this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety." 

2. John Quincy Adams, President.— In 1821, Monroe was 
re-elected by 231 electoral votes out of 232 ; and the term 
Federalist ceased to be used except in reproach. In 1825 
there were four candidates, Jackson, Clay, Adams, and Craw- 



XXII.] THE FIFTIE TH ANNIVERSAR Y. 317 

ford, all calling themselves Republicans. Of these, Adams, 
son of the Federal President, was chosen by the House of Rep- 
resentatives, there being no choice by the Electoral College. 
He had been supported largely by former Federalists, and was 
accused of being a Federalist in disguise. As President, he 
favoured internal improvements, which the Republicans wish- 
ed to leave to the States. But the point on which the strong- 
est opposition arose was the question of import duties. Origi- 
nally the North was for Free Trade and the South for Protec- 
tion. The former took this line from the belief that the shipping 
and carrying business would gain by free trade ; the latter 
upheld protection because they were the chief producers and 
so wished to keep out foreign rivals. Accordingly, in 1816, 
Lowndes and Calhoun of South Carolina carried a bill im- 
posing protective duties. But before long the Northerners 
found that they were the gainers by this. Their manufactures 
rapidly grew, and thus it became their interest to keep out 
foreign goods. At the same time the heavy import duties 
prevented the South from buying imported articles and 
forced them to depend for such on the North. Thus, when 
the question of raising the duties was brought forward in 
1828, the two parties had changed sides. The South under 
Calhoun were fighting for Free Trade, the North led by 
Daniel Webster of Massachusetts for Protection. 

3. The Fiftieth Anniversary of Independence. — In 1826 
the 4th of July was kept with great national rejoicings. It 
was marked by one of the most noticeable events in history, 
the death on that day of Jefferson and Adams, the two men 
who had drawn up the Declaration of Independence. Though 
for a while estranged, they had been reconciled and had for 
many years corresponded as iriends. Adams's last words 
were "Thomas Jefferson yet survives." In reality when those 
words were spoken Jefferson had been dead a few hours. 
The death of those old men seemed a sort of omen for the 



3i8 SOUTH CAROLINA AND NULLIFICATION, [chap. 

time to come. No President of the United States has been 
chosen since the election of John Ouincy Adams, as were 
his father and Jefferson, as being the most cuUivated and 
enhghtened statesman of the day. He and all that went 
before him were men raised by training and social position 
above the ranks of the people ; all that have come since 
have been taken from the common run of citizens. 

4. In his second Candidature.— Adams, taking the style of 
" National Republican," was opposed by General Jackson, 
supported by the other wing of the Republican party, now 
calling themselves " Democrats." Adams's strength lay in 
the commercial and manufacturing States, which demanded 
protective duties and a National Bank. Jackson was sup- 
ported by the Southern States, which demanded free trade. 
Jackson's chief claim to office was the popularity gained by 
his services in war. Over and above this , he showed a strength 
of will and a power of commanding men which, as we shall 
see, were perhaps more needful for a President just at this 
time than knowledge and culture. Hitherto however his force 
of character had shown itself chiefly in high-handed abuses 
of military authority. After his defence of New Orleans, 
he had conducted a war against the Seminole Indians in the 
South. There he had set at nought the orders of his own 
Government ; he had seized Spanish towns without due 
authority, and had executed two British prisoners on the 
ground that they were intriguing with the Indians, but on 
evidence far too weak to justify such a measure. In 1824 he 
had been brought forward as a Presidential candidate and 
had been beaten by Adams. In 1828 they were again rival 
candidates, and this time Jackson was elected. 

5. Nullification.— President Jackson signalized his entry 
to office by a wholesale discharge of Government officials. 
True to the principles of his party, he reversed as far as 
possible Adams's measures for strengthening the navy and 



[]■■ 

1 



I4v^ 



^ 



l- 






:4^ 






t--^' 



'i* 








XX I T . ] NULLIFICA TION. 3 1 9 

for granting the aid of the Government to internal improve- 
ments. His terra of office was marked by two great strug- 
gles. The most important of these was against the extreme 
members of his own, the Democratic or State Rights party. 
In 1832 the import duties were lowered, but not enough to 
satisfy the South. South Carolina had always been the 
most active and independent of the Southern States. There, 
more than elsewhere, the planters regarded themselves as 
a separate and superior class, and looked down upon the 
traders of the North. In Calhoun, South Carolina found a 
leader well suited to her. He had been elected Vice-Presi- 
dent under Jackson. His family came from Ireland, but 
had been for many years settled in America. He may be 
looked on as a type of all the best, and of many of the most 
dangerous, characteristics of the Southern planters. As a 
speaker, he was clear and forcible, though unpolished. But 
his influence lay not in his oratory, but in the intense ear- 
nestness of his convictions, his devotion to his own State, 
and the loftiness and purity of his private character. He 
believed firmly in slavery as a system of life, a form of in- 
dustry, and above all as insuring the political ascendency 
of the South. He held this belief like a religious creed, to 
which he clung with the unbounded devotion of a fanatic. 
Under his leadership. South Carolina called a Convention 
and refused to accept the tariff. This line of action was 
called Nullification, and was based on the doctrine that 
any state had a right in extreme cases to refuse to be bound 
by the enactments of the central Government. This was not 
the first case in which a State had shown such a tendency 
to disobedience. During the war of 1812, a Convention 
of delegates from Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode 
Island, opposed to the war and to other measures of the 
Government, had met at Hartford in Connecticut, and had, 
it is said, discussed the possibility of separation. But the 



320 SOUTH CAROLINA AND NULLIFICATION, [chap. 

affairs of the Hai-tford Convention were conducted with great 
secrecy and seem to have excited httle alarm. It was not 
so with the hot-bloodei planters of South Carolina. They 
v,-ere known to be making preparations for lesistance, and 
it seemed for a while that civil war was at hand. Jackson's 
courage and promptitude, and the power which he had 
shown of striking swiftly and effectually with hastily-col- 
lected and ill-organized forces, now stood the Union in 
good stead. Southerner and Democrat though he was, he 
v/as as passionately attached to the cause of the Union as 
Calhoun was to that of his own state. Jackson publicly 
announced that the Union must be preserved at all hazards, 
and made preparations as for war. He was supported, not 
only by his own party, but by the Federals. Webster made 
in Congress one of his greatest speeches, in which he clearly 
pointed out that there was no alternative for any state be- 
tween obedience and rebellion, and that to allow each state 
to decide how far it need obey the National Government was 
practically to destroy that Government. A conflict was pre- 
vented by a compromise. This was effected in a bill brought 
forward by Clay of Kentucky, providing that the import 
duties should be gradually reduced. This was finally car- 
ried. The supporters of it thought that any measure ought 
to be adopted which would remove the danger of civil war, 
and at the same time preserve the authority of the Constitu- 
tion. Many of them too must have seen that the demands 
of South Carolina were in themselves reasonable, whatever 
might be said of the way in which they were urged. Others 
felt that, by yielding anything to threats, they would weaken 
the authority of the Constitution, and encourage like attempts 
in the future. 

6. The Bank Question.— Jackson's other great struggle 
was against his natural opponents the Federals, and on behalt 
of Democratic principles. In 1832 the National Bank applied 



XXII.] GROWTH OF THE WHIG PARTY. 321 

for a renewal of its charter from Government. This was 
opposed in Congress. The Federals, headed by Webster, 
supported it, and it was carried ; but the President refused 
his approval. The Bank retaliated by using its vast in- 
fluence to prevent Jackson's re-election, but failed. Jackson 
then withdrew all the public moneys in it and transferred 
them to banks in the various States. The opposition to the 
Bank was based, partly on the old Democratic hostility to 
central institutions, partly on alleged mismanagement and 
corruption. These charges seem to have had some founda- 
tion, though they were probably exaggerated. The with- 
drawal of the public money and the refusal of a charter did 
not at once destroy the Bank, but they deprived it of its 
character as a public institution and led to its downfall. 

7, Growth of the Whig Party. — About this time a new 
political party sprang up, calling themselves at first National 
Republicans and afterwards Whigs. As the latter name 
showed, they supported the Constitution as the safeguard of 
national liberty. The leaders of this party were Henry Clay 
and Daniel Webster. The former was the son of a Keniucky 
clergyman, the latter of a New England yeoman. Both 
were sprung from the middle class and rose into public life 
by their success as lawyers. Both were men of liberal mind 
and wide culture, and remarkable for sobriety of judgment. 
In eloquence, Webster has probably never been equalled by 
any of his countrjmen, unless perhaps by Patrick Henry. 
Neither Clay nor Webster ever atta'ned the Presidency, 
partly because the allegiance of the party was in a measure 
divided between them. Moreover, during their period of 
public life it was found necessary to select as candidates lor 
the Pi-esidency, not men of brilliant ability, but moderate 
and sate men, against whom no special objection could be 
urged by any one. Though Webster and the Whigs sup- 
ported Jackson on the question ol Nullification, yet on the 

Y 



322 SOUTH CAROLINA AND NULLIFICATION, [chap. 

Bank Charter and other important matters they were op- 
posed to him. In 1829 Van Buren, the Secretary of State, in 
a paper of instructions to the American minister in England, 
blamed the poHcy of Adams's government, and instructed 
the minister to disavow their proceedings in his dealings 
with the British cnbinet. Webster held that this introduction 
of party politics into diplomacy would be injurious to the 
relations of America with other countries. The Senate sup- 
ported this view, and when, in 1832, Jackson nominated 
Van Buren as minister to England, they took the serious 
step of refusing to sanction the appointment. 

8. Van Buren President.— Jackson was succeeded by Van 
Buren, a Northern Democrat. He was a man of education, 
and his writings on American politics show that he under- 
stood the Constitution of his country far better than the 
generality of his party, better perhaps than any statesman 
of his day except Clay and Webster. But he was either 
wanting in energy and force of will, or unfortunate in having 
few opportunities of showing such qualities. He seems to 
have shrunk from the exercise of power, but, when forced to 
use it, to have done so with wisdom and dignity. During his 
term of office the Government was involved in considerable 
trouble with the Indians. For more than ten years measures 
had been going on for moving them westward. Hitherto the 
Indians had been merely savage enemies on the outskirts 
of the States ; but now things took a new turn. They began 
to form settlements, which might fairly be called civilized, in 
territory which the United States claimed. Those settlements 
refused to acknowledge the authority of the United States, 
and so were likely to be a source of much trouble. The 
National Government therefore adopted the policy of buying 
up the lands and transtcrring the Indians to territories in the 
West. Such bargains must always be one-sided afiairs, witli 
craft on the one hand and ignorance on the other, and 



XXII.] AMERICA AND GREAT BRITAIN. 323 

quarrels soon broke out, leading to a number of detached 
wars. The most troublesome of these was with Jackson's 
old foes, the Seminoles, who held out in Florida under a 
brave chief named Osceola. They made themselves spe- 
cially obnoxious to the Southern planters by receiving run- 
away slaves. At length Osceola was treacherously captured 
by his opponent, General Jessup, and resistance gradually 
died out. These wars cannot be regarded as of much 
importance. When once the Indians and the white settlers 
began to be mixed up together, and their territories to overlap 
and interlace, the fate of the Indians was sealed. Their only 
chance was to present an unbroken frontier of wild country 
tenanted only by savages. As soon as the traders could 
come among them, corrupting and dividing them, all pos- 
sibility of united and effective resistance was at an end. 

9. Difficulties between America and Great Britain. — In 184I 
General Harrison, the Whig candidate, who had been defeated 
by Van Buren in 1837, was elected President. His claim to 
office rested entirely on his military services. His fitness 
for his position was never tested, as, after holding office for a 
month, he died. According to the provision of the Constitu- 
tion he was succeeded by the Vice-President, John Tyler. The 
most important event of his Presidency was t'le settlement of 
certain threatening differences between America and Great 
Britain. For a long while there had been an unsettled ques- 
tion between the two countries as to the boundary of Nova 
Scotia. There were also more serious subjects of dispute. 
In 1837 an insurrection broke out in Canada. The insurgents 
were aided by a party of Americans. To check the latter 
some of the loyal Canadians crossed over to the American 
bank of the St. Lawrence and destroyed the Caroline, a 
vessel belopiging to the friends of the insurgents. In the 
affray which followed, one Durfee, an American, was killed. 
For this Alexander Macleod, a British subject, was arrested 

Y 3 



3^4 SOUTH CAROLINA AND NULLIFICATION, [chap. 

and it seemed at one time as if he was likely to be found 
guilty of murder and executed, a proceeding whicli the 
British Government must have resented. Fortunately he 
was acquitted. In 1841 an American vessel, the Creole, was 
sailing from Richmond to New Orleans with a cargo of slaves. 
The slaves rose, seized the vessel, and took her into the 
British port of New Providence in the West Indies. The 
authorities there assisted the slaves to escape. Thus each 
nation was furnished with a grievance against the other, 
and such ill-feeling resulted that serious fears of war were 
entertained. 

10. The Ashburton Treaty. — Fortunately Webster, who was 
Tyler's Secretary of State, was liked and respected by British 
statesmen. In 1842 Lord Ashburton was sent out from 
England to negotiate a treaty. The main point to be settled 
was the boundary between Canada and the Northern States. 
The difficulty occurred which specially besets Federal 
Governments in their dealings with foreign nations, in the 
matter of territory. The question affected, not merely the 
whole American Union, but more especially the states of 
Maine and Massachusetts, to which the territory in dispute 
would belong. These states might reasonably suspect that 
their special interest would be sacrificed to those of the Unioi\ 
At length the matter was settled by a compromise. Great 
Britain gave up the larger and more valuable share of the 
disputed territory, and the United States Government paid a 
sum of 3250,000 to the states of Maine and Massachusetts 
to make up the loss of the rest. Two other points of impor- 
tance were settled by this treaty. One was the suppression 
of the slave-trade by the two Governments. This it will be 
better to deal with when we come to the whole question of 
slavery. The other was the mutual surrender of criminals. 
This was beset by some difficulty. The United States de- 
manded that this arrangement should include fugitive slaves, 



xxii.J NEW STATES. 3=5 



a point on which the British Government was resolved not to 
yield, or even to admit anything which could be afterwards 
twisted into a pretext for such dealings. At length Lord 
Ashburton was satisfied on this point, and the treaty was 
signed in August, 1842. Both in England and America 
fault was found with the provisions of the treaty as going 
too much to the other side. Webster and the other defend- 
ers of the treaty reasonably enough appealed to this as a 
proof of its fairness. 

II. New States. — During the period through which we 
have passed, several new States had been added to the 
Union. Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan had been formed 
out of the unappropriated north-western territory ; Alabama 
and Mississippi out of the original south-western territory ; 
and Missouri and Arkansas out of the remainder of the 
French province of Louisiana. At the extreme north-east, 
moreover, Maine had, with the consent of Massachusetts, 
been formed out of the territory of that State, in 1820, as a 
partial compensation to the anti-slavery party for the gain 
which the slave-holding interest was to receive through the 
admission of Missouri as a slave State, as will be related in 
the next chapter. Two territories, afterwards to become 
States, viz., Iowa and Wisconsin, had been organized in the 
north-west ; and the Spanish cession of 18 19 had been or- 
ganized as the Territory of Florida. 



326 NORTH AND SOUTH IN OPPOSITION. [CIIAP, 

CHAPTET XXIII. 
GROWING OPPOSITION BETWEEN THE NORTH AND SOUTH. 

The slavery question (i) — the policy of the South {2)— the slave 
trade (3) — the annexation of Texas (4) — the Mexican war (5) — 
treaty of Guadalupe Hiiialgo (6) — the dispute about Oregon (7) — 
difficulties about the itezvly-acquired lands {8)— the abolition move- 
vieni (9) — the D?-ed Scott case (10) — the strugg'efor Kansas (ll) 
—execution of John Brown {12)— A'c-w States (13). 

I. The Slavery Question. — We must now go back some- 
what to trace from its beginning the contest between the 
Northern and Southern States. This struggle turned on 
two points, Free Trade and Slavery, So far as Free Trade 
was concernijd, we have already seen how matters stood. 
\Ve have now to deal with that which proved in the long run 
a far more serious difficulty, Slavery. When the Constitution 
was drawn up, there seemed every prospect of slavery being 
gradually and peaceably extinguished. Some of the leading 
statesmen, notably Washington and Jefferson, themselves 
Virginian slave-holders, looked forward to abolition. It was 
provided by the Constitution that the importation of slaves 
should not be interfered with till 1808, and in that year it was 
made illegal. The first origin of the distinct struggle for and 
against slavery was the admission of new states to the 
Union. The five old Southern States, Maryland, Virginia, 
the two Carolinas, and Georgia, soon found themselves united 
in opposition to the North. Their habits and ideas, and 
above all their commercial interests, were different from those 
of the Northerners. Thus it v as clearly to the interest of the 
South that the new states should also be slave states, and so 
be inclined to cast their lot in with it. Accordingly, when 



xxiii.J THE POLICY OF THE SOUTH. 327 

Carolina and Georgia gave up to the Union those districts 
which afterwards became Tennessee, Alabama, and Missis- 
sippi, they stipulated that Congress should not interfere with 
slavery in those Territories. As the Southerners favoured 
slavery on political grounds, so the Northerners opposed it. 
Thus, when in 1820 Missouri was proposed as a State, a fierce 
struggle ensued. The North demanded that slavery should 
be prohibited in Missouri ; the South denied the right of Con- 
gress to impose any such restriction. At last an arrangement 
was made, known as the Missouri Compromise. Slavery 
was permitted in Missouri ; but, to compensate the North, 
it was provided that slavery should henceforth be prohib- 
ited in all the unorganized territory north of 36° 30'. 

2. The Policy of the South. — As we have seen, the 
number of representatives which each State sent to Con- 
gress was determined by the number of its inhabitants, 
and the slaves were reckoned, not in tuU, but at the rate of 
threc-fitths. This gave the Southern States a distinct interest 
in increasing their number of slaves. Thus they learnt to 
look on slavery as the sheet-anchor of their political power. 
And as the ditterences between the North and South on 
matters of commerce and foreign policy grew wider, so much 
the more firmly did the South hold to slavery. In this, as in 
the matter of Free Trade, Calhoun was the great leader and 
representative of Southern opinion. The ascendency of the 
South, and above all that of his own state, were the objects 
to which his whole life was devoted, and, as was but natural, 
he looked on slavery, the corner-stone of that ascendency, 
with like devotion. In this contest the South enjoyed one 
great advantage. They were united ; the North was not. 
The South were predominantly Democrats. In the North, 
the most eminent men, and especially the New England 
merchants, were nearly all Federals ; but there were many 
Northern Democrats who were allied with the South. 



32S NORTH AND SOUTH IN OPPOSITION. [chvp. 

3. The Slave Trade. — In spite of the Southern anxiety for 
the spread of slavery, enough of the old feeling against it still 
remained for various measures to be passed against the 
slave trade. By the Treaty of Ghent both nations pledged 
ihemselves to oppose it. In 1820 it was declared by Con- 
gress to be piracy ; and by the Ashburton treaty the two 
nations agreed to employ a joint squadron on the African 
coast to suppress it. 

4. The Annexation of Texas. — We may now take up the 
general history where we left off, and trace those events 
which brought the contest between the North and South to a 
head. In 1821 Mexico threw off the yoke of Spain, and 
became an independent Republic. In 1827, and again in 1829, 
attempts were made by the United States to purchase from 
Mexico Texas, a fertile territory adjacent to the Southern 
btates, and resembling the best parts of them. Mexico 
however refused to part with it. Soon afterwards a number 
of emigrants from the Southern States moved into Texas. 
In 1835 the inhabitants of Texas, headed by one Houston, a 
Virginian adventurer, rose against the Mexican Government. 
They defeated the forces sent against them, captured Santa 
Anna the President of Mexico, and forced from him an 
acknowledgment of their independence. They then formed 
Texas into a republic, with a constitution modelled on that 
of the United States, and made Houston president. In less 
than a year the people of Texas asked to be joined to the 
United States. Indeed it was generally believed that from 
the outset this had been the object of the Southern adven- 
turers who went thither. The South were extremely anxious 
for their admission. The soil and climate of Texas fitted 
it for slave labour, and thus it was sure, if it were admitted 
and slavery allowed there, to swell the strength of the 
Slave States. All the ablest statesmen in the North were 
strongly opposed to its admission. They pointed out that 



xxiix.] THE MEXICAN WAR. 329 

it would involve the nation in a war M'ith Mexico, that 
it would strengthen the South unduly, and lead to disputes 
which might rend the Union asunder. Webster put 
forward these 'views strongly. Van Buren, a Democrat, 
and Clay, a Southerner, went with him. Calhoun, alone 
among statesmen of note, was in favour of annexation, 
avowedly as a means of strengthening the Slave States. 
Adams and a number of members of Congress drew up a 
protest, pointing out that all the proceedings about Texas 
had for " their objects the perpetuation of slavery and the 
continual ascendency of the slave power," and going on to 
say that annexation would " not only result in a dissolution 
of the Union, but fully justify it' But the Democrats were 
bent on annexation. They refused to support Van Buren for 
the Presidency, and brought forward an obscure man named 
Polk, who opposed Clay i nd was elected. The Whigs then, 
seeing that annexation was certain, tried to lessen the evil by 
providing that in half the newly-acquired territory slavery 
should be prohibited. They failed however to carry this. 
It was finally arranged that Texas should be at once admitted, 
and tour additional States gradually formed out of the newly- 
acquired land. As regarded slavery, the old line of the 
Missouri Compromise was to be observed, but as that was two 
hundred miles beyond the northernmost part ot Texas the 
concession was of no value. Under these conditions, in 1845 
Texas became one of the United States. 

5. The Mexican War. — As might have been expected, 
Mexico did not sit down tamely under the loss of Texas. 
The United States Government, tearing some attempt to 
recover their new territory', garrisoned it with a small force. 
Their commander. General Taylor, was warned by the 
Mexican Government that, if he advanced beyond a certain 
boundary, the Rio Nueces, it would be taken as a declara- 
tion of war. He disregarded this warning, and the war 



330 NORTH AND SOUTH IN OPPOSITION. [chap. 

began. After some unimportant operations in the west, in 
M'hich the Americans were easily victorious, Taylor took 
possession of the town of Matamoras. By June, 1846, his 
force was brought by fresh reinforcements up to six thou- 
sand. With this he marched on Monterey, a strong place, 
where the Mexicans had concentrated their forces to the 
number of ten thousand. After three days' hard fighting, Mon- 
terey fell. Taylor's force however was too much weakened 
for him to venture on an advance. In February, 1847, 
Santa Anna, the President of Mexico, marched against Tay- 
lor with twenty thousand men. Taylor, with five thousand 
men, advanced to meet him. The Mexicans made the first 
attack at Buena Vista. Partly through Taylor's accidental 
absence, the Americans were for a while thrown into con- 
fusion, but upon his return they rallied. The battle was 
indecisive, but next morning the Mexicans withdrew. In the 
meantime another ailny had invaded Mexico in the west, and 
had conquered California with scarcely any difficulty, except 
what arose from the nature of the country. In the spring of 
this year an invading force of twelve thousand men sailed 
under General Scott, the American commander-in-chief On 
the 9th of March they reached Vera Cruz. This place was 
very strongly fortified, but in every other respect wretchedly 
unprovided with means of resistance. The Americans were 
allowed to land unresisted ; they threw up earthworks and 
opened fire on the place from sea and land. After four days 
bombardment, to which the besieged made no attempt to 
reply, the place surrendered. Scott then marched inland 
and defeated Santa Anna, who had taken a stro.'-ig position 
at Cerro Gordo. The Americans then advanced unchecked 
within fifteen miles of the city 01 Mexico. Here serious 
operations really began. At the time of the Spanish conquest 
the city of Mexico was surrounded by a lake. This was 
drained by Cortez, and the city consequently now stood in 



XXIII.] THE DISPUTE ABOUT OREGON. -x^ix 

the middle of a valley. The approaches to it were guarded 
by a number of strong fortresses, and a canal forming a moat 
belted the city. One by one these outlying fortifications 
were captured, and on the 14th of September the American 
army fought its way into the capital. After this the Mexicans 
made no further resistance. From a military point of view, 
the chief importance of the war was the education which it 
gave to the American officers, especially in the art of 
marching troops through an enemy's country cut off from 
their own basis. The most distinguished officers in the 
great Northern and Southern war had learned their business 
in Mexico, and such marches, daringly planned and success- 
fully carried out, were among its most conspicuous features. 

6. Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. — On the 2nd of February, 
1848, peace was signed at Guadalupe Hidalgo. Mexico 
resigned her claim to Texas, and also handed over New 
Mexico and California to the United States for a payment 
of 15,000.000 dollars. By far the most important part of the 
acquisition was California. This gave the United States the 
Pacific as well as flie Atlantic seaboard. In fact, it may be 
looked on as, in some sort, the completion of that great 
westward movement which had been going on during the 
whole of this century. The possession of California made 
it certain that the American people, though perhaps not 
under a single government, must in time form one continuous 
community across the whole continent of America. 

7. The Dispute about Oregon. — The only other notice 
able feature in Polk's Presidency was the dispute with Great 
Britain as to the north-west boundary between the British 
possessions and a district belonging to the United States 
called Oregon. Polk and the Democratic party laid claim, 
without a shadow of foundation, to territory which twenty- 
five years earlier had been universally recognized as British. 
So resolutely was this claim urged that there seemed at one 



332 NORTH AND SOUTH IM OPPOSITION. [chap. 

time danger of war. Webster however, with the s^ne anxiety 
to preserve peace which had guided him in framing the 
Ashburton treaty, opposed the Democrats. For this he 
was bitterly denounced as having, both in this case and in 
the Ashburton treaty, betrayed his country. But the claims 
put forward by the Democrats were so clearly untenable that 
they were abandoned, and the boundary proposed by Webster 
was adopted. In 1848 this north-west district was formed 
into a Territory with the name of Oregon, and five years 
later a fresh Territory was taken out of it, called Wash- 
ington. 

8. Difficulties about the newly-acquired Lands. — In 1849 
Polk was succeeded by General Taylor, who died on the 9th of 
Julyof the year following. His successor,. Vice-President Fill- 
more, was a well-meaning and fairly sensible man, but unfit 
for the difficult times in which his lot was cast. The forebod- 
ings of Webster and the other Northern statesmen as to the 
result of the increase of territory was soon fulfilled. California 
claimed to be admitted as a Siute, and the newly-acquired 
districts were to be settled as Territories. The question then 
arose whether slavery was to be permitted in these districts. 
It seemed at first that, if they were left to themselves, slave 
labour would prevail there, as their natural character was 
suited to that system. But the gold discoveries in Cali- 
fornia liad drawn thither numbers of fi ce workmen. Conse- 
quently it was clear that, if it was left to the majority of the 
inhabitants to settle the question, they were sure to vote 
against slavery. There were various circumstances which 
made the South specially anxious that slavery should be 
admitted into California. They believed that, once admitted, 
it would become prevalent, and that California would be 
added to the number of Slave States. Moreover the hostility 
to slavery was growing stronger in the North. The Northern 
States were showing themselves backward in helping the 



xxili.] THE NEWLY-ACQUIRED LANDS. 333 

South to recover runaway slaves. Moreover two Free States, 
Wisconsin and Iowa, had been lately added to the Union, 
and the Slave States were anxious to recover the influence 
which they had thus lost. Hitherto they had taken up the 
ground that slavery was a question to be dealt with by each 
state for itself. Now they changed their ground, and de- 
clared that it was unjust to allow the Government of any 
State or Territory to prevent any citizen of the United 
States from emigrating with his property, that is to say his 
slaves, into the newly-acquired lands. The contest began 
in 1846, while the acquisition of the land in question was 
still doubtful. In that year David Wilmot of Pennsylvania 
brought forward a motion, providing that slavery should be 
excluded from all Territories acquired by treaty. This, com- 
monly called the Wilmot Proviso, was carried in the House 
of Representatives, but defeated in the Senate. Next year 
it was again proposed with a like result. Calhoun met this 
by a series of resolutions, declaring that any such measure 
would deprive the slave-holding states of their rights, and 
would tend to subvert the Union. So fierce did the strife 
become that many of the most thoughtful statesmen began 
to fear separation or civil war. In this crisis Clay, now a 
man of seventy-two and in broken health, came forward as 
a peace-maker. Like Webster, who now supported him, 
Clay had always held a moderate position between the two 
extreme parties. His proposal was that the question of 
slavery in California and in the new Territories should be 
left to the local Governments. This was a concession to 
the South in the matter of Territories, to the North in the 
matter of California. He also proposed that the inland slave- 
trade should be abolished in the district of Columbia, but 
that provision should be made for the stricter enforcement 
01 the law lor recovering runaway slaves in intQ states. 
The success of this scheme, called Clay's Omnibus Bill, 



334 NORTH AND SOUTH IN OPPOSITION. [chap. 

was in a great measure due to the support of Webster, who, 
in one of his most eloquent speeches, pointed out the danger 
of separation. During this struggle the South lost its great 
leader, Calhoun, who died at the age of sixty-eight. 

9. The Abolition Movement. — Fillmore was succeeded as 
President by Pierce, a man much of the same stamp as 
Polk. His Presidency was conspicuous for a number of petty 
quarrels with foreign nations. He and his cabinet con- 
trived to embroil the United States with Great Britain, 
Denmark, Spain, Brazil, Paraguay, and the Sandwich 
Islands. In internal politics there was a lull. Clay's bill had 
brought peace, but only for a while. A great change had 
gradually come over both North and South in the matter of 
slavery. In the beginning of the century the feeling about 
slavery had been much the same in the North and South. 
Both regarded it as morally evil, and looked forward to a 
time when it should die out. Indeed there seems to have 
been a stronger feeling against it among the Southern 
planters, who knew its evils, than among the Northern 
merchants. As late as 1831 and 1832 the Assembly of Vir- 
ginia discussed the question of extinguishing slavery. But 
gradually this feeling changed. Slavery was the keystone 
on which the political power of the South resred ; and they 
came to value it, and we may almost say to love it, for its 
own sake. So far from regarding it as an evil to be gra- 
dua^lly extinguished, they openly defended it as the only 
proper and wholesome form oi society, and anyone in the 
South who ventured to speak against slavery was in danger 
01 his life. On the other hand, a strong feeling had been 
growing up in the North against slavery. A small but acvive 
party had sprung up, called Abolitionists, who denounced 
slavery, and published books setting forth its evils, and telling 
stories, some no doubt false and exaggerated, but many cer- 
tainly true, of the horrible cruelties perpetrated by Southern 



xxiil.] THE DRED SCOT! CASE. 335 

slave-holders. At first this party was almost as unpopular in 
the North as in the South, and the publisher of the first Aboli- 
tion newspaper, William Garrison, was nearly pulled to 
pieces by a Boston mob. Gradually however the Aboli- 
tion party gained numbers and influence, and ventured to 
put forward the doctrine that Congress ought to suppress 
slavery. Moreover they assisted slaves to escape, thereby 
breaking the fugitive-slave law. When we consider what 
sufferings the re-capture of a runaway often brought with it, 
it is hard to blame men for resisting it and breaking a law 
which they believed to be unjust. Yet, considering how 
important it was not to irritate the South, or to give them any 
just ground for complaint, such doings were to be regretted. 
Many leading Northern statesmen felt this. They believed 
that slavery would gradually die out of itself, that the 
Abolitionists were only infuriating the South and hardening 
it in its support of slavery, and that the only effect of their 
efforts would be to break up the Union. In 1846 a political 
party sprang up called Free-soilers, who opposed slavery, 
but by constitutional means, namely, by supporting the 
Wilmot Proviso. This party put forward Van Buren as its 
candidate in 1848, and John P. Hale in 1852. In 1856 it 
passed into the Republican party, which must not be con- 
founded with the Republican party of Jefferson's tmie. 

10. The Dred Scott case. — In 1857 an event occurred, 
which strengthened the Northern feeling against slavery, 
A case was tried on appeal before the Supreme Court, con- 
cerning the freedom of a negro, Dred Scott. Chief Justice 
Taney's decision was understood to lay down the following 
rules :— I. That negroes, although free, could only be citizens 
01 some one particular State, but not of the Union, and so 
could not enjoy any of the rights secured by the United 
States constitution. II. That Congress had no power to 
iorbid slavery in any Territory. III. That slaves, if bought 



336 NORTH AND SOUTH IN OPPOSITION, [chap. 



in Slave States, could then be moved to Free States and still 
remain slaves. 

II. The Struggle for Kansas. — In 1854, the slaveholding 
interest in Congress, after a severe struggle, secured the 
repeal of so much of the " Missouri Compromise " Act of 
1821 as prohibited slavery in the Territories north of 36° 30'. 
This left every Territory to take its own course about sla- 
very. The result was that Kansas, as the Territory nearest 
the settled States, became a battle-ground for the two 
parties. The North wished that a majority of the inhabi- 
tants should be against slavery ; the South for it. Each kept 
pouring in fresh emigrants to outnumber the other. At 
first the South w^as successful, and a code of laws was 
established with many and stringent provisions on behalf of 
slavery. This was brought about, it is said, not by legitimate 
emigrants, but by a mob of low Southerners, with no occupa- 
tion and no real connexion with Kansas, who passed 
across the border, took possession of the polling places, 
and carried the elections against the real citizens. A suc- 
cession of outrages, amounting almost to a civil v/ar on a 
small scale, followed. At last, however, the party from the 
North was successful, and Kansas was definitely settled as a 
free state. 

12. Execution of John Brown. — Pierce was succeeded in 
1857 by Buchanan. Of all the American Presidents he 
seems to have been the most utterly unfit for his place. The 
main events of his Presidency will be better mentioned when 
we come to deal with the war. One however may be noticed 
now, as it stands by itself and has no direct connexion with 
the pohtical proceedings of the time. That was the execution 
of John Brown. He was a New Englander, descended from 
the original Puritan settlers. His four sons were among the 
Northerners who fought to keep slavery out of Kansas. Not 
content with joining and helping them, he led a sort oi 
crusade against slavery into the South. He was attacked at 



xxiii.] EXECUTION OF JOHN BROWN. 337 

Harper's Ferry in Virginia by the United States troops, as 
well as by the State militia. After a desperate fight, in 
which most of his followers were killed, he was himself 
taken and hanged. 

13. New States. — Besides Texas and California, Iowa 
and Wisconsin, which have been mentioned, Florida, Ore- 
gon and Minnesota were admitted as States between 1844 
and i860, making the number of States, at the latter date, 
thirty-three. The population had risen to thirty-one mil- 
lions and a half. 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY. 

Election of Lincobi ( i ) — South Carolina secedes (2) — outbreak of 
hostilities [■^—formation of the Sotdhern Confederacy (4) — 
preparations for war (5) — inauguration of Lincoln (6) — bom- 
bardment of Fort Sumter (j)— proclamation of war and 
blockade of the southern ports (8) — secession of Virginia and 
the remaining southern states (9). 

I. Election of Lincoln. — The contest for the election of 
Buchanan's successor, in i860, brought four parties into 
the field. The Democratic party split into two sections. 
That controlled by the slavery propagandists nominated 
Breckenridge, of Kentucky, Vice-President with Buchanan ; 
the more conservative section nominated Douglas,- of Illi- 
nois. The remnants of the Whig party, under the name 
of the Constitutional Union party, nominated Bell of Ten- 
nessee. The Republican party, which had grown out of 
the Free Soil party of 1848, and in 1856 had nearly carried 
its candidate, John C. Fremont, against Buchanan, put for- 
ward Abraham Lincoln, representing the principle of the 
Wilmot Proviso, that freedom under the Constitution was 
national ; slavery local, protected only where established 
by the positive law of a State. The Territories bemg un- 



338 THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY. [chap. 

der the control of Congress, it was declared to be the duty 
of the General Government to exclude slavery therefi-om. 
Against this the Douglas Democrats asserted the right of 
every Territory to establish or prohibit slavery at will ; 
while the Breckenridge Democrats asserted the right of 
slaveholders to carry their property into Territories, even 
against the will of the inhabitants. They were also sus- 
pected of designing to reopen the slave-trade. Lincoln had 
been born in Kentucky and brought up in Indiana. His 
father was a poor man of unsettled habits, with no regular 
occupation. The son, Abraham, emigrated when young 
to Illinois. Rapid change of business and a mixture of 
occupations, which would seem ludicrous or impossible in 
an old country, is a characteristic of the United States, and 
especially of the west. Abraham Lincoln, before he was 
thirty, had been a boatman, a sailmaker, a shopkeeper, and 
a lawyer. Besides this, he had fought in the Black Hawk 
war, and had sat in the legislature of Illinois. In some 
respects he may be compared with Patrick Henry. Both 
were men of humble origin, rough and uncultivated in 
manner, and with little outward show of the qualities which 
ensure worldly success. In both, political conflict called forth 
powers of which their every-day life gave no promise. Both 
owed their success as speakers, not to culture or learning, 
but to the earnestness of their convictions and the native 
vigour of their minds. But Lincoln had none of that bril- 
Uancy of imagination and vivid strength of speech which 
made Henry the foremost orator among the statesmen of 
the Revolution. On the other hand, he far surpassed Henry 
in worldly wisdom, in self-control and patience, and in the 
art of availing himself of the weaknesses of others and 
making them the instruments of his own success. In. 1846 
Lincoln was elected representative for Illinois, and before 
long he became known as a rising statesman. He was pro- 



XXIV.] SOUTH CAROLINA SECEDES. 339 

posed unsuccessfully as Vice-President in 1856, and in i860 
Avas brought forward as the Republican candidate for the 
Presidency. Mr. Lincoln had been a " Henry Clay Whig ; " 
and when the question of slavery was brought into promi- 
nence, he assumed the attitude of a Conservative with strong 
anti-slavery sympathies. While holding firmly that slavery, 
where it existed under the sanction of a State, could not, un- 
der the Constitution, be in any degree interfered with, he op- 
posed its extension, believing that, if confined within existing 
limits, the system would die out through increasing unprofit- 
ableness, as the soil became exhausted by slave cultivation. 
When in Congress, he had supported the Wilmot proviso, 
and had himself brought forward a Bill for gradually freeing 
the slaves in the district of Columbia. He had repeatedly 
denounced the evils of slavery, though, like many other wise 
men, he confessed himself unable to overcome the difficulties 
in the way of abolition. He and his supporters now declared 
that Congress ought to forbid the introduction of slavery into 
the Territories, and on this point lay the main issue between 
himself and his opponents. Thus he rallied round him all 
the anti-slavery feeling in the North, both that of the extreme 
Abolitionists and of those who were for opposing slavery by 
more moderate means. 

2. South Carolina Secedes. — In November, i860, Lincoln 
was elected President. The Southern Democrats at once felt 
that their politicil ascendency was doomed. Many of them 
had declared before the election that the South would quit 
the Union if defeated. Ever since the days of Nullification, 
South Carolina had taken the lead among the Southern 
States. Nowhere was the passion for slavery so strong ; 
nowhere did the Southern planters view the Northern 
merchants with so much hatred and contempt. Besides, the 
position of South Carolina inclined her to take the lead in 
secession. She could not be reached from the North except 

z 2 



340 THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY. [chap. 

through other slave- holding States — Maryland, Virginia, and 
North Carolina. They would be at once compelled either 
to assist in subduing her or to join her ; neutrality would be 
impossible, and the South Carolinians did not doubt which 
side, their neighbours would take. On December the 17th, 
six weeks after Lincoln's election, a Convention of the State 
of South Carolina met at Charleston, and formally repealed 
their acceptance of the United States' Constitution in 17S0. 
The event was celebrated with public rejoicings; cannon 
were fired, and a procession was made to the grave of Cal- 
houn. A South Carolina newspaper, by way of asserting the 
complete severance of the Union, published news from the 
other States under the head of " Foreign Intelligence," 

3. Outbreak of Hostilities. — In name and form the pro- 
ceeding of South Carolina was a peaceful one. The Con- 
vention sent commissioners to Washington to arrange the 
transfer of the forts, arms, and other property of the Federal 
Government within the State of South Carolina. It was 
agreed by the commissioners and the Government at Wash- 
ington that, while those arrangements were being discussed, 
no hostile action should be taken on either side. In spite of 
this agreement, hostilities broke out. Major Anderson 
held Fort Moultrie, one of the smaller works in Charleston 
harbour, with a garrison of seventy men, for the Federal 
Government. He asked for a reinforcement, but Floyd, the 
Secretary of War, refused it, on the ground that to grant it 
would enrage the secessionists. Anderson then spiked his 
guns, carried off his stores, and moved into Fort Sumter, a 
stronger work, also in Charleston harbour. This act was 
held by the South Carolinians and their supporters to be a 
breach of faith. Floyd recommended the withdrawal of the 
garrison, and, when this was not carried out, he resigned. 
The commissioners refused to carry on further negotiations 
till the garrison was withdrawn. Buchanan gave a hesitating 



X \ I V. ] FORMA TION OF SO UTIIERN CO NEED ERA C K 34 1 

answer, saying that the acknowledgment of the independ- 
ence of South Carolina was a question for the Congress, not 
for the President, and refusing either to approve of or con- 
demn Anderson's proceedings. The commissioners answered 
this with an insolent letter, denouncing Anderson's conduct, 
and railing at Buchanan for not condemning him and with- 
drawing the garrison. Buchanan, with the approval of his 
cabinet, refused to consider the letter, and the commissioners 
went home. On January the 5th, the Federal Government at 
last took active measures. A steamer, the Star of the West, 
was sent to Fort Sumter with reinlorcements and munitions. 
The State Government of South Carolina was warned of this 
by Thompson of Mississippi, a member of Buchanan's cabi- 
net. They made preparations for the arrival of the ship 
and fired upon her. Being without cannon, she made no 
attempt to resist, and sailed home. 

4. Formation of the Southern Confederacy. — The state of 
the Government at Washington favoured the enterprise of 
the secessionists. The result of a presidential election is 
known as soon as the electors are chosen in the various 
States. But the new President does not come into office for 
some months afterwards. Thus, although Lincoln was prac- 
tically elected in November i860, he was not formally ''in- 
augurated" till March 1861. Even with a strong Government, 
there is always a danger that the party whose term of power 
is about to expire will be inattentive to the public welfare, 
ajid that its hands will be weakened by the certainty of its 
a .preaching end. Buchanan's Government, always feeble, 
was utterly powerless at this crisis. Had a man like Andrew 
Jackson been in power, secession might have been crushed 
in its very outset. Buchanan only addressed a message to 
Congress which recognized the grievances of the South in 
the matter of slavery, but made no attempt to grapple with 
the difficulties of the case. In Congress, South Carolina 



342 THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY. [chap. 

found influential supporters. Jefferson Davis of Mississippi 
proposed in the Senate that any State should have the right 
to demand the withdrawal of all Federal troops from its 
territory. Mason of Virginia also proposed that the laws 
empowering the Senate to employ the army and navy for 
enforcing the laws in any State should be suspended in 
South Carolina. Sympathy with South Carolina soon showed 
itself even more strongly. Early in February, 1861, a con- 
vention of six States, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, 
Mississippi, Louisiana, and Florida, was held at Montgomery 
in Alabama. A Federal Constitution was drawn up for these 
six States, modelled on the Constitution of the United States. 
The main difference was that the President was chosen for 
six years, and could not be re-elected, and that some 
portion of his power of appointing government officials was 
transferred to the Senate. Jefferson Davis, a man of ability 
and high personal character, was chosen Pi-esidcnt, and 
Alexander Stephens of Georgia Vice-President. The latter 
upon his entry to office made a remarkable speech, setting 
forth that slavery was to be the corner-stone of the new Con- 
federacy, and that this was the first Government which had 
recognized and acted upon the principle that the inferior 
races were intended by God and nature to be in bondage to 
the superior. The Middle States were invited to join the new 
Confederacy. 

5. Preparations for War. — Neither side seem at the outset 
to have foreseen the results of seces?;ion. The Northerners 
had heard the threat of separation so often, that they had at 
last come to look upon it as no more than a threat, made to 
extort political concessions. The South, on the other hand, 
emboldened by Buchanan's weakness and trusting to their 
alliance with the northern Democrats, seem to have antici- 
pated little or no resistance. They utterly underrated the 
iron will and set purpose of their new ruler, the growing 



XXIV.] PREPARATIONS FOR WAR. 343 

hatred to slavery, and, above all, the passionate love of the 
North for the Union and their fixed determination not to 
suffer it to be broken up. Yet the South did not so far reckon 
on the forbearance of their opponents as to neglect prepara- 
tions for defence. For some time before South Carolina 
seceded, the Southerners in the employment of Govern- 
ment had been laying their plans to cripple the action and 
undermine the resources of the Federal Government. Fore- 
most in this policy was Floyd of Virginia, the Secretary of 
War. He had transferred more than a hundred thousand 
muskets and rifles from Northern arsenals to the South. He 
had also placed a large portion of the army under the com- 
mand of General Twiggs, who handed over his forces and 
stores, with more than a million of dollars from the national 
funds, to the secessionists. The same policy was adopted 
with the navy. Ships were sent off to distant stations, and 
many of those that remained were carried over by their com- 
manders to the side of the South. Whatever we may think 
of the right of the South to secede, nothing can justify or 
palliate the conduct of men like Floyd. They deliberately 
used the opportunities which their official position gave them 
to destroy the power of the Government which they seived. 
Meanwhile Buchanan, paralysed by the treachery of his 
cabinet, by the contempt with which all parties alike looked 
on him, and, it is said, by the fear of assassination, remained 
utterly helpless and inactive. Whatever might be the right 
policy, Buchanan's was certainly wrong. If the Southern 
States were to be kept within the Union, every step should 
have been at once taken to check the growth of their military 
power, and reclaim them either by persuasion or force. If 
the North was quietly to acquiesce in secession, measures 
should have been taken at once for a friendly and peaceful 
separation. Yet Buchanan's conduct was only that of a weak 
and irresolute man in a position far beyond his powers. The 



344 THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY. [chap. 

real blame lay, not with him, but with the political system 
which had made such a man the ruler of a great nation. 
Part of the evil too was due to the arrangement which leaves 
public affairs in the hands of a party after the nation has 
shown by the presidential election that that party no longer 
enjoys its confidence or represents its views. 

6. Inauguration of Lincoln. — On March the 4th, 1861, 
Lincoln formally entered on office. His opening address was 
disfigured by the flowing and meaningless rhetoric which is 
too common among modern American statesmen. But it 
spoke out clearly and unhesitatingly on the one great sub- 
ject, the preservation of the Union. Secession, he said, 
meant rebellion, and to acknowledge the right of any State 
to secede was to destroy the central Government and to 
introduce anarchy. The Constitution, he said, must be en- 
forced throughout the States, peacefully, if it might be, but, 
if needful, by force. On the subject of slavery, he announced 
that he had neither the wish nor the right to meddle with it 
where it already existed. 

7. Bombardment of Fort Sumter.— The South soon took 
active measures for resistance. Volunteer forces were as- 
sembled at Charleston and at Pensacola in Florida. The 
force at Charleston was placed under the command of 
Beauregard, a Louisianian of French descent, who distin- 
guished himself throughout the war by his activity and enter- 
prise. He at once erected batteries at Fort Sumter. In 
March, commissioners from the new Confederacy came to 
Washington to demand an audience of the President. This 
was refused, and Seward, the Secretary of State, who at this 
time was the most influential member of the cabinet, told 
them that he could not recognize them as holding any official 
position. They answered that the refusal of an audience was 
practically a declaration of war, and that they received it as 



XXIV,] PROCLAMATION OF WAR. 345 

such. This was immediately followed by an attack on Fort 
Sumter. The guns of the Fort were ill-placed and its 
supplies insufficient. After three days' resistance, Anderson 
surrendered, without the loss of a single life on either side. 

8. Proclamation of War and Blockade of the Southern 
Ports. — The fall of Fort Sumter was the signal for action 
on the part of the North. Lincoln issued a proclamation 
declaring that the seceding States were obstructing the 
execiition of the laws ; that the ordinary forms of procedure 
were insufficient for the occasion, and that he had called out 
the militia to suppress the unlawful combinations existing in 
the South. Troops were brought down from the North for 
the defence of Washington. The feeling of the Marylanders 
was shown by the conduct of a mob, who attacked the 
soldiers during their passage through Baltimore and killed 
some of them. The establishment of these troops at Wash- 
ington cut off Maryland from the other Southern States, and 
withheld her from following her natural bent, and joining 
the new Confederacy. The proclamation calling out the 
militia was quickly followed by another, declaring the 
Southern ports to be in a state of blockade. This was in 
one way a mistake on the part of the Federal Government. 
By a rule of International Law, a government cannot block- 
ade its own ports, but only those of a foreign enemy. Thus 
the blockade was an admission by the North of the point 
for which the South contended, namely, that it was entitled 
to be treated as a separate and independent power. 

9. Secession of Virginia and the remaining Southern 
States. — So far it was uncertain what hne of policy Virginia 
would adopt. Clearly she could not remain neutral. By 
refusing to help the Federal Government she would prac- 
tically make herself a party to secession. Her interests and 
her sympathies seemed to draw her both ways. She was a 
hlaveholding State, and so far her interests lay with the 



346 THE SOUTHERX CONFEDERACY. [chap. 

South. But she had never thrown herself into the cause of 
slavery with the same passionate earnestness as South 
Carolina, nor had she ever shown the same bitter enmity to 
the North. Her commercial interests too were not wholly the 
same as those of the South. A large portion of her resources 
was derived from the breeding and rearing of negro slaves, 
and the re-opening of the African slave-trade, as advocated 
by the South, would have been a heavy blow to her pros- 
perity. Moreover the native State of Washington and Jeffer- 
son and ]\Iadison could not but be loth to quit that Union in 
whose creation she had so large a share. Still she had ever 
clung to the doctrine of State rights. That view now pre- 
vailed, and the State Convention decided, albeit against the 
wishe- rf a large minority, to join the Southern Confederacy. 
Even it w : blame South Carolina, or the Southern States 
generally, foi Virginia we can feel nothing but pity. On no 
State did the burthen of the war fall so heavily. Yet she 
was not responsible for secession itself, and only in part for 
those events which led to it. Compelled to choose a side in 
a war which she had not kindled, she reluctantly took that 
towards which her natural sympathies inclined her, and 
which her political training taught her to believe was in the 
right. The example of Virginia was followed by Texas, 
Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee. In July the seat 
of th-^ new Government was fixed at Richmond. The 
members of the new Confederacy were known as Confe- 
derates ; the inhabitants of the Northern States who held 
by the old Constitution, as Federals. There is no special 
meaning in the distinction. It arose from the fact that 
Federal had always been the name for central institutions, 
as distinguished from those belonging to the different States, 
and that the party who had opposed the extreme doctrine of 
State rights in the early days of the Constitution were called 
Federalists. 



XXV.] RESOURCES OF EACH SIDE. 347 



CHAPTER XXV. 

THE WAR OF SECESSION. 

Resources of each side{l) — seizure of the FeJeral arsenals and dock- 
yards (2) — defence of Washington (3) — the war from a military 
point of view (4) — battle oj Bull Run (5) — affairs in Western 
Virginia (6) — opei'ations on the Upper Mississippi (7) — the battle 
of Shtloh {^)— capture of N^ew Orleins (9) — Federal attiick on 
Vicksburg (10) — the"AIerrimac " and ^'Monitor " (i i) — dealings 
with foreign nations {12) — McClellan' s campaign in Virginia (13) 
— Popes cavipaii^n in Vir^inii (14) — opa-ations in the west in the 
autumn of 1862 (15) — Bragg" s invasion of Kentucky {16) — Lee's 
invasion of Maryland (il) — Lijicoln emancipates the slaves (18) 
— battle of Chancellorsville (19) — Lee's second invasion of the 
North (20) — capture of Vicksburg (21) — campaign of Chat- 
tanooga (22) — the conscription and the riots of New York (23) — 
naval operations {2^) — Grant's plan oJ campAign (25) — Sherman s 
invasion of the south-west (26) — Hood's difeat (27) — the battles in 
thewilderness {z%)— Early's sortie {29) — re-electioti of Lincoln (30) 
—fall of Ri hmond (31) — Surrender of the Confederate armies 
(32) — death of Lincoln and end of the war {t,'^ — reconstruction of 
the union (34) 

I. Resources of each Side. — It may be well, before going 
further, to give some idea of the means and prospects with 
which each party entered on the war. As far as mere mili- 
tary resources went, there was no very wide difference. The 
advantage which the Federal Government ought to have en- 
joyed Vom the possession of the national arsenals and stores 
was in a great measure lost, owing to the treachery of those 
Southerners who had he d public offices. Neither side was 
at first well off for skilled officers. On the other hand, both 
in the North and South the absence of aristocratic exclusive- 



34S THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

ness allowed the best men to come quickly to the front. 
Ihus the armies on both sides were soon led by men of 
ability, while there was a great want of soldierly skill and 
knowledge among the subalterns. In many ways the South 
furnished better raw material for soldiers than the North. 
The Southern planters were more given to outdoor pursuits, 
to field sports and the like, than the town-bred merchants 
of the North. Good horses and skilful riders were plentiful, 
and the cavalry of the South was one of its most efficient 
supports. Above all, the South was united. It is sometimes 
said that secession was not the unanimous act of the South, 
and that a large majority was either beguiled or coerced into 
a movement which they condemned. But throughout the 
war, no such division of feeling sho-vved itself, save in Vir- 
ginia. There was no such unanimity in the North, at least 
at the outset of the war. Many actually sympathized with 
the South, and thought the attempt to detain her unjust ; 
many were indifferent. Jobbery and dishonesty of every kind 
were rife in the Gdvernment offices. As the war went on, all 
this was greatly lessened, and there grew up in the North a 
resolute determination to preserve the Union at any cost. 
But, from the very outset of the v\ ar, there were three great 
points of superiority whicli in the long run turned the scale in 
favour of the North. Her free population was far more numer- 
ous, and could bear the strain of a destructive war, while her 
opponent was becoming exhausted. The South too had no 
manufactures of her own. She had learned to depend entirely 
on Northern productions, and the loss of ihem struck a heavy 
blow at her resources. Lastly, the North had command of 
the sea. A navy cannot, like an army, be created at a few 
months' notice, and the vast superiority of the North in 
wealth, in harbours, and in materials for shipbuilding, gave 
her in this matter an immense advantage. It enabled the 
North to recruit her armies with supplies of emigrants drawa 



XXV.] SEIZURE OF FEDERAL ARSENALS. 349 

from Europe, while the South, with her whole coast blockaded, 
could not fill the gaps which every campaign made in her 
population. 

2. Seizure of the Federal Arsenals and Dockyards.— 
Owing to the feeble policy of Buchanan's government, the 
Confederates were allowed to possess themselves of every 
national fort and dockyard south of the Chesapeake Bay, 
save Fort Sumter, and Forts Key West and Pickens off the 
coast of Florida. The secession of Virginia led to further 
enterprises of the same kind. The arsenal at Harper's 
Ferry was seized, but the officers in charge had destroyed 
the greater part of the stores before evacuating the place. 
The two most important Federal possessions within Virginia 
were Fort Monroe and the Navy-yard at Norfolk. The latter 
contained two thousand cannon, a quarter of a million pounds 
of powder, large quantities of shot and shell, and twelve ships 
of war. A force of about five hundred militia, with ten 
small field-pieces, threatened the place. Captain M'Cauley, 
the officer in charge, although he had a force of a thousand 
men, did not attempt to resist, but scuttled the ships, made 
an ineffectual attempt to sink the guns, and abandoned the 
place, leaving the works and a large quantity of stores to 
fall into the hands of the Confederates. An inquiry was 
ordered by Congress, and a committee of the Senate decided 
that both Buchanan's and Lincoln's administrations were to 
blame for neglecting the proper defence of the place, and 
that Captain M'Cauley was highly censurable for not attempt- 
ing to hold it. Fort Monroe was a work of great size and 
strength commanding the Chesapeake Bay and James River. 
It was thought that the Virginians might by a prompt attack 
have seized it, and have dealt the Federal Government a 
heavier blow than it had yet sustained. But the opportunity 
was allowed to pass, and in May the place was garrisoned 
with twelve thousand men. 



350 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap, 

3. Defence of Washington. — Early in 1S61 rumours were 
afloat that the secessionists meant to seize tlie seat of Govern- 
ment. This danger was greatly increased by the secession 
of Virginia. Troops however were hurried down from the 
North in sufficient numbers to guard against any surprise. 
When the war openly broke out, it was clear that Washington, 
separated as it was from Virginia only by the Potomac, was 
one of the most vulnerable points in the Northern territory. 
Accordingly the defence of the capital became the first ob- 
ject with the federal Government. Earthworks were thrown 
up in the neighbouring heights, and troops were posted across 
the Potomac to cover the city. 

4. The War from a Military Point of View. — Before en 
tering on the detailed history of the war, it will be well to get 
a general idea of the military position of both parties, and of 
their main objects. The object of the South was, of course, 
merely defensive. Her territory may be looked on as a vast 
fortress bounded by the Potomac, the Ohio, the Mississippi, 
and the Atlantic. Her armies did indeed, more than once, 
penetrate into the Northern territory. But such measures 
were merely like the sorties of a besieged garrison, intended 
to draw off or weaken the assailants, and had no permanent 
occupation or conquest in view. Four main lines of attack 
lay open to the Federals: — i. An invasion of Virginia from the 
north. 2. An invasion of Tennessee to the south-west of the 
AUeghanies. 3. An attack from the sea-coast. 4. An invasion 
from the south-west, after they had obtained the control of the 
Mississippi. As the war showed, the real points on which the 
military strength of the Confederacy turned Avere the posses- 
sion of the Mississippi and of those lines of railway which con- 
nected the south-western States with the coast. By master- 
ing the Mississippi, the Federals would cut off their enemies 
from the rich States to the south of the river, besides inter- 
fering with the communication between the west and the sea. 



XXV.] BATTLE OF BULL RUN. 351 



Possession of the Mississippi might be obtained either from 
the sea, or from the west, or by a combined attack in both 
directions. By bearing in mind these general features of the 
war, operations, spreading over many thousand miles, and 
seemingly unconnected, are at once seen to form part of one 
distinct scheme of attack and defence. One very interesting 
feature of the war in a military point of view is that it was 
the first in which railways had ever played an important part. 
The effect of this was to lessen the advantage of superior 
numbers, as a small body of troops, dexterously handled, 
might be rapidly moved from point to point, and used suc- 
cessively against different portions of the enemy's force. 
This was of especial value to an arrny acting in its own 
country against invaders. 

5. Battle of Bull Run.— In July, the Northern and 
Southern armies confronted one another on the south side of 
the Potomac. The Southern army numbered about thirty 
thousand men, under Beauregard. The Northerners mustered 
forty thousand, under McDowell. His troops were ill-drilled 
and unsoldierly, and his officers inexperienced, but, as many 
of his men were enlisted only for three months, it was need- 
ful to do something at once, and accordingly he advanced. 
Both armies were in two divisions, the main force to the 
east, while two bodies of about eight thousand each, the 
Federals under Patterson, the Confederates under Johnston, 
faced each other about fifty miles further west. The two 
divisions of the Confederates enjoyed the great advantage of 
being connected by a line of railway. McDowell's plan was 
that Patterson should keep Johnston in check, while he him- 
self attacked Beauregard. But this plan was thwarted by 
the difficulty whicli we have so often met with before in 
./American history. The Pennsylvanian volunteers under 
Patterson refused to serve for a day longer than their en- 
gagement bound them. Patterson was obliged to withdraw, 



352 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chaf. 

leaving McDowell to cope single-handed with Johnston and 
Beauregard. Johnston at once hurried, with all the troops 
he could bring up, to the assistance of the main body. On 
the morning of July the 21st, McDowell fell upon the right of 
the Confederate line, and drove them back. The Federal 
advance was stopped only by the Virginian troops under 
General Jackson. " There's Jackson standing like a stone 
wall," cried the Southern General Bee, to encourage his 
men, and " Stonewall Jackson " was the name by which the 
Virginian commander was ever after known. This check on 
the Federal right was soon turned into a repulse along the 
whole line. At the veiy crisis of the battle, the remainder of 
Johnston's force came up from the west, fell upon the Fede- 
ral right, and rendered the victory complete. With undisci- 
plined troops, however brave they may be, a defeat is almost 
sure to become a rout, and the Federals fled from the field a 
panic-stricken mob, without a semblance of order or disci- 
pline. From a military point of view the result was of no 
great importance. The Federal loss was not more than 
three thousand in all, and their enemies gained no advantage 
of position. The real value of victory to the South was the 
confidence and enthusiasm which was called out by so com- 
plete a triumph at the very outset of the war. But probably 
the hopeful and exulting spirit which the battle kindled in the 
South was equalled, if not outweighed, by its eflect on the 
Northerners. Their defeat did not so much dishearten as 
sober them. Hitherto they had been possessed by a spirit 
of idle and vain-glorious confidence. They had fancied that 
secession could be crushed in two or three months. Now 
they saw that a great war was before them, which would 
tax their energies and their resources to the utmost. They 
learned that success could be bought only at a heavy price, 
and they soon showed that they were not unwilling to pay it. 
6. Affairs in Western Virginia,— It will be impossible in 



XXV.] OPERATIONS ON UPPER MISSISSIPPI. 353 

the history of the war to take in all the events in strict order 
of time. If we did so, we should be constantly shifting our 
view from one scene of operations to another, and be unable 
to get any connected idea of each. Many different sets of 
operations were going on together, which can only be kept 
clear and distinct by tracing out one for a considerable time, 
and then going back to another. We must now go back to 
events earlier than Bull Run. Virginia, as we have seen, 
was not unanimous in its resolution to secede. The wish to 
remain in the Union prevailed in the western part of the 
State beyond the Alleghanies. The inhabitants of this dis- 
trict wished to form themselves into a separate State, and to 
cleave to the Union. A convention met, which carried out 
the wishes of the inhabitants by establishing a separate 
government. This was regarded by the other Virginians as 
treachery to the State, which had a higher claim on their 
loyalty than the Union. Accordingly it became of importance 
both to the Federals and to the Confederates to secure this 
district. The West Virgmians themselves raised six thou- 
sand soldiers ; and troops from Ohio, Indiana, and other 
Western States were brought rapidly forward in their 
defence. Active operations began towards the close of 
May, under General McClellan, who advanced with a large 
force. The defending force, numbering about eight thou- 
sand, was stationed at Rich Mountain, on the western slope 
of the Alleghanies. When McClellan approached, they 
attempted to retreat, but were forced to give battle, and 
were completely defeated. Later in the year a Confede- 
rate force under Lee attempted to dislodge the Federals, 
but without success. It was not, however, till tvw years 
later that West Virginia was admitted ijiio the Union as a 
separate State. 

7. Operations on the Upper Mississippi. — During the 
summer and autumn of 1861 important operations went 

A A 



354 TH^ ^^^-'^R OF SECESSION. [chap. 

forward in the west. The States of Missouri and Kentucky- 
were, from their position, of great importance in the war. 
They commanded the Upper Mississippi and the south- 
west portion of the seceding States. Accordingly, it was 
an object with each party to secure them. Both States 
would have wished to remain neutral, if they. could have 
done so, but, as with Virginia, this was impossible. In each 
the sympathies of the inhabitants were about equally 
balanced. As Kentucky would not join the Southern Con- 
federacv, in September General Polk, a Louisianian bishop 
who had turned soldier, invaded and took possession of it. 
In Missouri, a long and severe struggle between the two 
parties within the State was settled by the Federals occupy- 
mg it with an ai-my. In both Kentucky and Missouri there 
was some fighting during the autumn of 1861, which resulted 
somewhat in favour of the Confederates, but nothing decisive 
was done. In the autumn of 1861, the Federal Government 
created a separate military province, called the Western 
Department, with its centre at St. Louis on the Mississippi. 
This was placed under the command of General Halleck. 
His part in the war, though not a conspicuous, was a very 
important one. He never distinguished himself in the 
field, but his understanding ot military geography and his 
judgment as to the general course of operations were pro- 
bably equal to that of any man in either army. He saw that 
the true policy of the Federals was to advance up the 
Tennessee and the Cumberland, a river which runs for 
the most part parallel to it, and so to penetrate into 
the south-western States, and to master the upper valley 
of the Mississippi. To carry out this it was necessary 
to take Fort Henry on the Tennessee, and Fort Donel- 
son on the Cumberland. Accordingly, at the beginning 
of 1862, General Grant with seventeen thousand men was 
sent against Fort Henry. It was evident that the place 



XXV.] OPERATIONS ON UPPER MISSISSIPPI. 355 

could not be held, but Tilghman the Confederate general in 
command, made a determined resistance, and enabled the 
main body of his troops to escape to Fort Donelson. The 
Federal gunboats then attacked Fort Donelson, but were 
beaten off. The Confederates however, finding themselves 
outnumbered by the besieging force, attempted to cut their 
way through, but were driven back, mainly through the 
resolution of Grant and his subordinate Smith. Several 
thousand of the garrison escaped at night by means of small 
steamboats. The remainder surrendered. By this victory, 
the Federals gained ten thousand prisoners, twenty thou- 
sand small-arms, and sixty-five guns, with a loss of little 
more than two thousand men. It also gave them possession 
of Kentucky, and of a large part of Tennessee. Moreover, 
the Confederate line of defence was driven back some fifty 
miles, and Nashville, a large and important town, and Co- 
lumbus, a fortress which commanded the upper waters of 
the Mississippi, were abandoned to the Federals. This was 
soon followed up by further successes. The Confederates 
held New Madrid on the right bank of the Mississippi, and 
No. 10 Island just opposite. General Pope was sent from 
St. Louis to attack them. Batteries were erected against 
New Madrid, whereupon the garrison fled, leaving large 
quantities of arms and ammunition. No. 10 Island was then 
bombarded from the river, but to no purpose. Pope could 
not attack it, as it could only be reached from the left bank, 
and he could not bring up boats to carry his troops across, 
owing to the Confederate batteries which commanded the 
river. This difficulty was at length overcome by cutting a 
canal twelve miles long across a horseshoe formed by the 
river. By this means transports were brought down the 
river, Pope crossed, and the island surrendered, with nearly 
seven thousand men and large supplies. Following up this 
success, the Federals in two engagements defeated the Con- 

A A 2 



356 THE WAR OF SECESSION: [chap. 

federate fleet of gunboats and obtained possession of the 
Upper Mississippi as far as the frontier of Tennessee. 

8. The Battle of Shiloh.— In spite of these disasters, the 
Confederate forces in the west proceeded to act on the offen- 
sive. The position of the two armies was not altogether 
unhke that at Bull Run. Each was in two divisions, the 
main bodies facing each other under Grant and Beauregard, 
the smaller divisions also facing each other under Buell and 
Sydney Johnston. This Johnston must not be confounded 
with the other Confederate general of that name, Joseph 
Johnston, the hero of Bull Run. As at Bull Run, the 
Southern armies had the advantage of railway communica- 
tion. Their commanders resolved to unite, and to deal with 
Grant before Buell could join him. This scheme was suc- 
cessful, and the whole Confederate army under Johnston 
marched against Grant. The numbers were about equal, 
forty thousand on each side. Early on the morning of April 
the 6th the Confederates attacked. Many of the Federal 
troops were taken completely by surprise, and fell tcck in 
confus'on. A second Bull Run seemed to be at hanc^ with 
this addition, that the Federals had a river immediately at 
their back, and were thus cut off from retreat. Such a misfor- 
tune was warded off by the determination with Avhich General 
Sherman held his ground, and by the death of Johnston. 
Struck by a bullet, in the eagerness of victory he disregarded 
the wound, and only learned its severity when he found 
himself fast bleeding to death. Had he lived, he would pro- 
bably have followed up his success, and crushed Grant's 
demoralized army before Buell could come up. The delay 
s^ved the Federals. Grant was joined by Buell with twenty 
thousand men, and, with that dogged courage which distin- 
guished him throughout the war, he returned next day to the 
attack. His troops, by rallying so readily and so successfully, 
showed that the panic of the day before was due to want of 



XXV.] CAPTURE OF NEW ORLEANS. 357 

discipline, and not to cowardice. In the second engagement 
the Confederates were worsted, and withdrew in good order ; 
their total loss in the two days was about eleven thousand, 
that of the Federals some three thousand more. Throughout 
these two days' engagements, called the Battle of Shiloh, there 
was little room for skilful tactics. It has been described as a 
gigantic bush-fight. From the nature of the ground, neither 
commander could get any comprehensive idea of the state 
of affairs, or even attempt to exercise control over more than 
a part of his army. Soon after this, the Confederate Govern- 
ment, considering its forces unequal to the task of holding 
Missouri and Arkansas, abandoned those States to the enemy. 
The troops withdrawn thence were concentrated under 
Beauregard at Corinth. Shortly after the Federals took 
Memphis on the Mississippi, a town of considerable com- 
mercial importance, and valuable as a centre of railway 
communication. 

9. Capture of New Orleans. — On the Lower Mississippi 
the Federals had achieved even more brilliant and valuable 
successes. In no department was the North weaker at the 
outset than in its navy, and in none were so much energy 
and determination shown in rapidly making up for short- 
comings. At the beginning of 1861 there were only four 
ships fit for duty in harbours held by the Federal Govern- 
ment. All the rest of the national navy was either seized by 
the Confederates or was at foreign stations. Yet, by the end 
of the year, the blockade had been so successfully maintained, 
that a hundred and fifty vessels had been captured in the 
attempt to break through. Moreover the Federals had taken 
Port Royal, a fortress on the coast between Charleston and 
Savannah, and of importance for the defence of those two 
places. This was soon followed by an unsuccessful en- 
deavour to block up Charleston harbour by sinking ships, 
filled with stone, across its mouth. This attempt to destroy 



358 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

for ever a valuable harbour, of great importance to Southern 
commerce, was not much to the credit of the Federal 
Government. The next important naval attempt was of a 
far more glorious character. This was the capture of New 
Orleans by Admiral Farragut, whereby the Southern Slates 
were cut off from the lower waters of the Mississippi. Con- 
sidering the great importance of the place, the Confederate 
Government do not seem to have done enough for its defence. 
In April, 1862, the Federal fleet entered the mouth of the 
river, and for six days and nights bombarded the fortification 
which guarded the entrance. On the morning of the 24th, 
before daybreak, the Federals fought their way up the river, 
past the forts, and through the gunboats of the enemy. 
The Confederate flotilla was completely destroyed, while the 
assailants only lost one vessel. General Lovell, the com- 
mander at New Orleans, considering that it would be 
impossible to hold the city, withdrew his troops. Farragut 
took possession of the place, and was joined by General 
Butler with a land force, which had been at hand, though it 
had taken no part in the attack. The city was then placed 
under the military government of Butler, He kept order, 
and the inhabitants do not seem to have suffered much 
under his rule. But his overbearing manner, his summary 
and, as it was considered, illegal execution of a citizen who 
had cut down the United States flag, and the brutal language 
of his public documents, earned for him, alone among all 
the Federal commanders, the universal hatred of the 
South. 

10. Federal attack on Vicksburg — But the chief Confed- 
erate stronghold on the Mississippi still remained. Vicks- 
burg stands on a horseshoe of land and commands the river 
in both directions. Moreover, it is protected on the north- 
west by the Yazoo, a river which flows into the Mississippi 
above the town, and it is also surrounded by swamps and for- 



XXV.] THE "MERRI3IAC" AND "MONITOR." 359 

est. On June the 24th the Federal fleets from New Orleans 
and St. Louis united. The same manoeuvre was tried here 
which had succeeded at New Madrid. A canal was cut 
across the horseshoe, and thus the Federal fleet was enabled 
to command the whole river without passing the batteries 
of the town. The siege was marked by a most brilliant ex- 
ploit on the part of a small Confederate ram, the Arkansas. 
She steamed out of the mouth of the Yazoo, fought her way- 
through the Federal fleet of fifteen vessels, doing much 
damage to them, and anchored safely under the guns of 
Vicksburg. In July, after a futile bombardment, the Fed- 
erals abandoned the attack. 

II. The "Merrimac" and "Monitor," — One feature 
in the naval history of the war deserves notice, since 
it ushered in a change of the greatest importance in 
naval warfare. This was the use of iron-clad vessels. The 
first of these that appeared in the war was a somewhat 
ronghly-built ram with iron plating, called the Manassas, 
devised by a Confederate officer, Commodore Hollins. She 
fell upon the Federal squadron which was blockading the 
mouth of the Mississippi, dashed into the midst of it, and 
put it to flight. Soon afterwards it became known that the 
Confederates were preparing a large iron-clad. This was 
the Merrimac, a. steamer which had belonged to the Federal 
Government, and had been captured in Norfolk Navy-yard. 
The Federals set to work to build an iron-clad turret-ship, 
called the Monitor, to match her. Each worked hard to be 
the first in the field. In this the Confederates succeeded. 
On March the 8th, 1862, the Merrimac appeared in the 
mouth of the James River, and immediately destroyed two 
Federal vessels. She attacked a third, but, before she could 
complete its destruction, the Monitor, just launched, came to 
the rescue. She stood the shock of the Merrimac, which 
had been fatal to the wooden ships, and at last beat her off 



36o THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

with much damage. This fight was the first fair trial of iron- 
clad ships. 

12. Dealings with Foreign Nations. — The Southern Con- 
federacy at the outset confidently expected help from foreign 
powers. But in this it was disappointed. The European 
nations all stood neutral. The British Government excited 
the anger of the North by recognizing the South as belli- 
gerents, though, as I have said, the declaration of blockade 
had already in reality so recognized them. In the winter 
of 1 86 1 an event occurred which threatened to embroil the 
Federal Government with Great Britain. The Confederate 
Government sent two agents, Messrs. Slidell and Mason, 
to England. They ran the blockade, and then sailed in an 
English steamer, the Trent, from Havannah. Captain Wilkes, 
in the Federal war-ship Saji Jaciiito, intercepted the Trent, 
ordered her to heave to, and, when she refused, fired upon 
her. He then sent a party on board, and carried off the 
agents to New York. This act was, in kind, not unlike 
those which had driven the Americans into the war of i8t2, 
though it was a far more distinct and glaring breach of the 
law of nations. The British Government at once demanded 
the liberation of the Southern agents, giving the Federal 
Government seven days to consider the matter. President 
Lincoln and Mr. Seward, the Secretary of State, saw that 
the act could not be justified, and the agents were released. 

13. McClellan's Campaign in Virginia. — We must now 
go back somewhat in time to trace the operations on the 
Virginian frontier since Bull Run. A vast Federal force, 
called the Army of the Potomac, was being concentrated near 
Washington under General McClellan. In his hands it was 
gradually changed from a mere horde of undisciplined 
recruits into a well-drilled and well-appointed army. By 
February, 1862, this force had grown to about two hundred 
thousand. The autumn and winter of 1S61 had passed, and 



XXV.] MCCLELLAN'S CAMPAIGN IN VIRGINIA. 361 

nothing was done. For this inactivity McClellan was greatly 
blamed. He was a Democrat, and it was thought that his 
political sympathies withheld him from inflicting a crushing 
blow on the South. It must be said in his defence that, 
before he could fight, he had to create a serviceable army. 
The President, too, interfered with his arrangements by de- 
taching troops under separate commands, and thwarted his 
wishes by sacrificing every other military object to the defence 
of Washington. In April, 1862, McClellan set out against 
Richmond with more than one hundred thousand men. He 
first marched into the peninsula between the Rappahannock 
and the James River. His first proceeding was to lay siege 
to Yorktown, a place garrisoned by eight thousand men under 
General Magruder. Elaborate preparations were made for 
opening fire, but, before they were completed, Magruder had 
withdrawn. An attempt was made to pursue Magruder, but 
his rear-guard checked the Federals at Williamsburg and 
inflicted on them considerable loss. After this, McClellan 
advanced slowly on Richmond, while the Confederates re- 
tired before him. At this time the Federal army suffered 
severely from sickness. On May the 31st the Confederates 
turned upon their pursuers at Fair Oaks, and, though over- 
powered by superior numbers, dealt them a serious blow. 
Soon after, Stuart, a Confederate general of cavalry, per- 
formed an exploit which deserves special mention. With one 
thousand five hundred horsemen he rode right round the 
Federal army, doing great damage, and for a while cutting 
off McClellan's communications with the rear. In the mean- 
time operations were going on further to the west, which 
had an important influence on McClellan's movements. 
The Shenandoah River runs north-west and joins the 
Potomac about fifty miles above Washington. Here Jack- 
son had been fighting with extraordinary success against a 
Federal force far larger than his own. By falling on the dif- 



362 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

ferent divisions of the enemy in succession, he had inflicted 
on them three severe defeats, and, by seriously alarming the 
Federal Government as to the safety of Washington, he had 
drawn off large forces which would otherwise have joined 
McClellan. He then by forced marches withdrew from the 
Shenandoah valley, and he had joined the Confederate army 
near Richmond before the enemy knew of his departure. 
That army was now under the command of General Lee. 
Lee was a Virginian of an old family, several of whose 
members had distinguished themselves in the revolutionary 
war. Like many other Virginians, he had reluctantly joined 
the secessionists in obedience to the commands of his State. 
It would have been hard to find a general more peculiarly 
fitted for the command of the Southern forces. An army 
far inferior to the enemy in number and resources specially 
needs the encouragement of personal loyalty and love for 
their commander, and no general ever called out those feel- 
ings more fully or more deservedly than Lee. Moreover his 
dashing and enterprising system of warfare was exactly 
suited to troops of great natural courage, who required to be 
buoyed up in a seemingly hopeless task by the prospect of 
brilliant success. Late in June Lee advanced against 
McClellan and defeated him. In order to effect this, Lee 
had to leave Richmond in a great measure unguarded. 
McClellan did not avail himself of this by advancing, as he 
feared that he might be cut off from his supplies. He soon 
abandoned all hope of an attack on Richmond, and withdrew 
his army. An attempt to harass his retreat was repulsed 
with severe loss, and he retired to a secure position on the 
James River. Though the loss suffered by the two armies 
was nearly equal, yet his whole campaign must undoubtedly 
be set down as a failure. Considering how much time had 
been spent in organizing his army, and remembering that 
no cost had been spared in making all needful preparations 



XXV.] POPE'S CAMPAIGN IN VIRGINIA. 363 



lor the campaign, it is impossible to acquit McClellan of the 
charges brought against him of over-caution and want of 
decision. His troops were indeed raw, but not more so 
than those with which Grant and Lee had successfully car- 
ried out a far bolder policy, while McClellan was far better 
furnished with supplies of every kind than those commanders. 
This much praise however must be given to him, that he 
never placed his troops in a position where a defeat would 
be fatal, that he conducted his retreat without suffering his 
army to become demoralized, and that the discipline which 
he introduced did much towards training the Northern 
armies for their later victories. 

14. Pope's Campaign in Virginia. — In June, 1862, the 
three armies which had been opposed to Jackson were placed 
under the command of Pope, fresh from his successes in the 
west. He issued a boastful address, contrasting the success 
of the western army with the failure in Virginia, and sneer- 
ing at McClellan's inaction. As might be supposed, after 
such a beginning, there was no cordial co-operation between 
the armies. In August, Pope advanced to the Rapidan 
River. Before marching he issued orders that his army was 
to live on the enemy's country, that, if any Federal soldier 
was fired at from a house, it was to be pulled down, and 
that Southern citizens refusing to give security for good con- 
duct were to be sent south, and, if they returned, to be 
treated as spies. In this Pope contrasted unfavourably with 
McClellan, who had done his best during his march through 
Virginia to save the country from the horrors of war. Pope's 
conduct excited great indignation in the South, and the 
Confederate Government issued orders that Pope and his 
commissioned officers should, if captured, be treated as 
common prisoners, not as prisoners of war. On August the 
9th Pope encountered a detachment of Lee's army under 
Jackson. The Federals were defeated in two battles, the 



364 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

first at Cedar Mountain, the other, somewhat later, at 
Gainesville, near the field of Bull Run. Early in September 
Pope was driven back into the works of Washington, having 
lost thirty thousand men. He laid the blame of these 
defeats on McClellan, who, he said, had withheld from him 
the support which he needed and to which he was entitled. 
Pope however was superseded, and McClellan was placed in 
command of the whole army. 

15. Operations in the west in the Autumn of 1862. — By 
the defeat at Shiloh and the earlier Federal successes, the 
Confederate line was a second time driven back. Halleck 
advanced with great caution and deliberation towards 
Corinth, but before he could reach the place Beauregard 
had secretly withdrawn his forces. For this he was severely, 
though it would seem unjustly, blamed in the South, and was 
superseiied by General Bragg. Soon after Halleck was 
called off to undertake the defence of Washington, now 
threatened by the Confederate successes in Virginia. This 
left Grant in command of the western army. A large por- 
tion of his forces was sent off under Buell to attack Chatta- 
nooga. This place is on the west frontier of Georgia, on 
the Tennessee River, and was of great importance as a 
centre of railway communication for the south-west. The 
Confederates now set to work resolutely to repair their losses 
in the west. Fresh troops were raised. Not only was 
Bragg thus largely reinforced, but his position was a much 
stronger one than that which the Confederates had before 
held. The country through which the right of the Federal 
line now had to advance was swampy and difficult to march 
through. Accordingly, while the main body of the Con- 
federates faced Buell, two smaller forces under Generals Van 
Dorn and Price were left to deal with Grant. Their first 
attempt was to dislodge the Federal •^i.^.c^., twenty thousand 
strong, under General Rosecrans, from C(vinth. But, though 



XXV.] BRAGGS INVASION OF KENTUCKY. 365 

the Confederates were superior in numbers, they were de- 
feated with heavy loss. Grant would have followed up this 
success by an advance on Vicksburg, but was withheld by a 
brilliant and successful attack made by Van Dorn on the 
Federal supply-depot at Holly Springs. By this the Federals 
lost supplies to the value of two million dollars. Soon after 
this the Federal General Sherman was defeated at Chickasaw, 
while attempting to penetrate through the country between 
the Yazoo River and Vicksburg. 

16. Bragg's Invasion of Kentucky.— In the autumn of. 
1862 the war assumed a new character. Hitherto the Con- 
federates had stood entirely on the defensive. Now they 
ventured to invade their enemy's territory, both in the west 
and near the coast. As we have seen, Bragg was set free 
with a strong army to act against Buell in Kentucky. His 
plan was to invade that State, both for the sake of the 
supplies which it contained and with the view of diverting 
Jie Federal forces from their operations on the Mississippi. 
Hopes too were entertained that Kentucky might be induced 
by this pressure to join the Southern Confederacy. Serious 
operations were preceded by some dashing raids of irregular 
cavalry under Morgan and Forrest, two Southern officers who 
specially distinguished themselves in such warfare. Bragg's 
invading army numbered fifty thousand. Buell's force 
against him was raised by detachments from Grant's army 
and other reinforcements to a hundred thousand. Thus out- 
numbered, Bragg withdrew, after a single battle at Perryville, 
in which the loss on each side was about equal. But for 
the large supplies which he carried off, this invasion would 
have been a complete failure. The Federal Government, 
considering that Buell had not followed up his success as he 
might have done, transferred the command to Rosecrans. 
Bragg again advanced, and was met by Rosecrans at Mur- 
freesboro. On December the 31st a fierce battle followed, 



366 THE WAR OF SECESSION: [chap. 

in which the Federals were defeated with heavy losses of 
men and artillery. Bragg, however, retreated, and thus 
ended the Confederate attempt to carry the war into the 
enemy's territory in the west. 

17. Lee's Invasion of Maryland. — Meanwhile, Lee had 
been carrying out a yet bolder policy, with better, though 
not with complete, success. On September the sth, 1862, he 
crossed the Potomac. The conduct of his army contrasted 
favourably vv'ith that of Pope's. Nevertheless the Confede- 
•rates were disappointed in the hope of support from the 
Marylanders. That had been one of the main objects of the 
invasion. But the sight of the ill-supplied, ill-clad, often 
unshod, soldiers from the South, was not encouraging. Lee's 
order for the campaign accidentally fell into McClellan's 
hands. Thus instructed, McClellan followed the line of 
Lee's march. Pressed as he was by superior numbers, Lee 
daringly detached twenty-five thousand men, under Jackson, 
to cross the Potomac and attack Harper's Ferry. The place 
was garrisoned by fourteen thousand men, of whom the 
cavalry, twenty-five hundred in number, cut their way out. 
The rest surrendered, and the place, with large stores, fell 
into the hands of the Confederates. Jackson at once hurried 
back and joined Lee, who had been brought to bay by his 
pursuer at Antietam. There a battle was fought with a loss 
of about thirteen thousand on each side. Lee then withdrew 
across the Potomac. McClellan mi^ht, it was thought, by a 
vigorous advance, have crushed the Confederate army before 
it could reach the river. But it must be said in his defence, 
that on his army rested the last hopes of the Federals in the 
east, and that defeat might have involved the capture of 
Washington. Soon, however, McClellan crossed the Poto- 
mac, but was superseded by Burnside, who had won some 
credit for small successes, while holding an independent 
command in North Carolina, but had been brought up 



XXV.] LINCOLN EMANCIPATES THE SLAVES. 367 

lo re-enforce Pope in Virginia. In December Burnside 
forced a crossing at Fredericksburg on the Rappahannock, 
and assaulted the Confederate hnes in force, but was re- 
pulsed with great slaughter, losing twelve thousand men, 
while the Confederate losses but little exceeded five thou- 
sand. The battle was little more than a butchery, and re- 
vealed Burnside's incapacity for a high command. 

18. Lincoln emancipates the Slaves — From the begin- 
ning of the war, a number of Acts had been passed by 
Congress with reference to the Southern slaves. As early as 
August, 1 861, it had been enacted that all slaves used by the 
Confederates for military purposes, such as constructing 
batteries, entrenching, and the like, should be free. Another 
Act forbade the surrender of slaves who should take refuge 
within the Federal lines. Laws were also passed, carrying out 
two measures which the anti-slavery party had alwavs advo- 
cated, namely, the abolition of slavery in the district of 
Columbia, and the prohibition of it in the Territories. In 
July, 1862, two Acts of great importance were passed. One 
ordered that all slaves escaping from, or taken from, Southern 
masters should be free. This was passed, after considerable 
opposition. The other provided for the enhstment of negroes 
as soldiers. Such negroes were to obtain, not only their own 
freedom, but that of their wives, mothers, and children. This 
went further in the direction of emancipation, and of the 
equality of the races, than any previous measure. So far 
the President had taken no decided line on the subject of 
slavery, but had remained firm to the principle which he had 
laid down, that he had no power to meddle with slavery 
where it already existed. The war however greatly altered 
the state of affairs. It might fairly be urged that the seceding 
States had forfeited their constitutional rights. There was 
too the yet stronger plea of necessity. There were obvious 
motives for emancipation. It might serve to convert the war 



36S THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

in the eyes of a large and influential class into a crusade 
against slavery, and to call out an enthusiasm which the mere 
cause of the Union could not kindle. Besides it would sap 
the resources of the South. The slave system set the whole 
white population free to fight, while the slaves produced all 
the needful supplies. Led by these motives, perhaps too in 
some measure by his personal antipathy to slavery, on January 
ist,iS63,Lincoln issued a proclamation, declaring all the slaves 
in the seceding States, free. Even though it were unconstitu- 
tional, the measure cut a knot which perhaps, if this oppor- 
tunity had passed, no state craft could have untied. It was no 
small thing to put an end, by whatever means, and at what- 
ever cost, to a system fraught with so much guilt and misery. 
But, while emancipation in some ways strengthened the 
hands of the North, it united the Southerners, and hardened 
them in their resistance. The abolition of slavery meant the 
utter overthrow of all their accustomed modes of life. The 
war was no longer for political independence ; it became 
almost a struggle for existence. 

19. Battle of Chancellorsville. — Hooker was now placed 
in command of the Army oi the Potomac. In April, he 
crossed the Rappahannock with one hundred and thirty 
thousand men. Lee's forces numbered but fifty-five thou- 
sand. On the 30th of April, Hooker issued an order to his 
men, in which he told them that the Confederate forces 
were " the legitimate property of the army of the Poto- 
mac." In the face of this overwhelming force, Lee 
divided his army, and, while he himself kept Hooker in 
check, he threw the other half under Jackson on the 
Federal right. Jackson's attack was successful, but the 
victory was purchased at a fearful price. He himself rode 
out to reconnoitre. When riding back, he and his staff 
were mistaken for Federal cavalry. The Confederates 
fired, and Jackson fell, mortally wounded. His death 



XXV. ] LEES SECOND IN VASION OF MAR VIAND. 369 

turned what niijjht have been an utter defeat into a mere check. 
On tlie morrow the eng.agement became general, and, after 
two days' hard fighting, Hooker retreated towards the Poto- 
viiHC, having lost about eighteen thousand men, against ten 
thousand of the enemy. Terrible as the Federal loss was, 
it did not equal that which the Confederates had sustained 
in the death of Jackson. His promptness and rapidity of 
movement, and his power of striking with a speed and a 
certainty which made no second blow needful, have probably 
never been surpassed. His personal character too, like 
Lee's, begat in his soldiers a love and enthusiasm for their 
general which alone could carry them through the tasks that 
he set them. Only by movements like his could the smaller 
armies of the South make head against the overwhelming 
masses of their enemy, and it was no common good fortune 
that gave Lee a subordinate so peculiarly fitted to carry out 
plans, often daring even to rashness. The qualities which 
distinguished Jackson were not indeed wanting in other 
Confederate generals, and the later events of the war 
showed that he had no unworthy successor in Longstreet. 
But, though Longstreet might fitly succeed, he could not 
equal Jackson, and Lee hardly overstated the loss when he 
said that it would have been better for the South if he 
himself had fallen. 

20. Lee's Invasion of Pennsylvania. — In May, Lee again 
marched northward. Rumours were prevalent of disaffec- 
tion in the North, and it was thought that the appearance 
of a Confederate army might strengthen this feeling. At 
the outset of the campaign, Lee captured a Federal force of 
about four thousand men at Winchester. Soon afterwards 
another change was made in the command of the army of 
the Potomac, and Meade succeeded to that post in which 
Hooker, Burnside, and Pope had failed, and in which 
McClellan had achieved but a doubtful and chequered suc- 

B B 



THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 



cess. On June 3rd the Southern army had crossed the Po- 
tomac. Soon after, Stuart, repeating his brilhant exploit of 
the previous year, led his cavalry right round the Federal 
army, and for a time cut off Washington from its defending 
force. Meade, like McClellan in the previous invasion, got 
information as to his enemy's doings from an intercepted 
letter sent by Davis to Lee. This told Meade that the 
South was utterly stripped of troops, that no reinforcements 
could be sent to Lee, and that Richmond was without defen- 
ders. He then posted his forces at Gettysburg, in a strong 
position, covering Washington and Baltimore. Lee attacked 
him on the ist of July, and was defeated after three days' 
hard fighting, with the loss of thirty-one thousand men. The 
Federal loss was twenty-three thousand. Meade made no 
immediate attempt to follow up his victory, and the defeated 
Confederates retreated across the Potomac. Meade followed 
them, and the war was again transferred to Virginia. Lee 
now avoided an engagement, and Meade advanced to the 
Rappahannock. 

21. Capture of Vicksburg. — Vicksburg was, as we have 
seen, the chief stronghold of the Confederates on the Mis- 
sissippi. It was well garrisoned and covered by a large 
force under General Pemberton. During the spring of 1863 
repeated attempts were made upon Vicksburg by water, but 
without success. In May Grant proceeded to surround the 
place. Johnston, who was in command of the Confederate 
armies in the south-west, tried to join Pemberton, but, before 
he could do so, Grant had thrown himself between the two 
armies. He then defeated Pemberton in two engagements, 
and drove him back into Vicksburg. Grant then assaulted 
the place three times, but in vain. Then, having brought 
up all the reinforcements he could to guard against an attack 
by Johnston, he invested Vicksburg. Pemberton held out 
for nearly seven weeks, but no assistance reached him, and 



xxv.] CAMPAIGN OF CHATTANOOGA. 371 

on 'the 3rd of July he surrendered. Next day, on the anni- 
versary of Independence and the day after the Federal 
victory of Gettysbm-g, Grant took possession of the place, 
which opened the Mississippi down to Port Hudson, a strong 
fortification near the mouth of the Red River, now closely 
invested by an army under General Banks. Four days later 
the post surrendered on receiving the news of the fall of 
Vicksburg, giving the North complete command of the 
Mississippi. 

22. Campaign of Chattanooga. — In June 1863 the Federal 
army in Tennessee under Rosecrans advanced upon Chatta- 
nooga. This place was the key to the Southern States on their 
western frontier, and the capture of it would lay the South 
open to invasion. The Confederate army under Bragg had 
been weakened in order to reinforce Johnston, and was now 
reduced to forty-six thousand, fourteen thousand less than 
the enemy's force. Bragg made but little attempt to check 
Rosecrans' advance or to hold Chattanooga. On September 
the 8th the town was abandoned, and the Federal army took 
possession of it. Bragg then rallied his troops at Lafayette. 
Fortunately for him, the Virginian army was able to spare 
him a detachment, and twelve thousand of Lee's best troops 
under Longstreet were hurried up to his assistance. Thus 
reinforced, Bragg gave battle at Chickamauga on September 
the 19th. The Federals were worsted, and their defeat would 
have been far more serious but for the firmness with which 
General Thomas stood his ground. Longstreet would have fol- 
lowed up his success, and would perhaps have converted defeat 
into destruction. But Bragg restrained him, and the Federals 
withdrew into Chattanooga. Their loss was about sixteen 
thousand ; that of the Confederates about twelve thousand. 
Bragg then stationed his forces on the heights above the 
town. In consequence of this defeat, Rosecrans was super- 
seded, and Thomas was appointed in his stead. The position 



372 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

of his army, with its communications harassed and inter- 
rupted, became one of serious danger. The Federal Govern- 
ment, fully aUve to the importance of holding Chattanooga, 
took active measures for its relief. Grant was appointed 
commander-in chief in the west, and was sent to take charge 
of the defence of Chattanooga in person, and twenty thousand 
men under Hooker were brought from Virginia. At the same 
time Sherman's force was hurried up from luka, two hundred 
miles off. On the other hand Bragg had imprudently weak- 
ened his army by detaching Longstreet with fifteen thousand 
men to besiege Burnside in Knoxville, a hundred miles to the 
north-east of Chattanooga. In the battle which ensued Grant 
sliowcd greater skill in combining the movements of large 
bodies of troops, and his subordinates showed greater power 
of carrying out such combinations harmoniously and success- 
fully than had yet been seen in the war except in the South- 
ern armies under Lee. On the 24th of November Sherman 
fought his way across the Tennessee river on the north of the 
town, and Hooker took possession of Look-out Mountain, a 
height to the south. Thus the whole Federal force was 
brought into line on the east side of the river. Bragg's army 
now lay opposite, on a line of heights called Missionary Ridge, 
a strong position, but too extensive to be properly held by the 
diminished forces of the Confederates. The battle opened 
with a fierce attack by Sherman on the Confederate right. 
This compelled Bragg to weaken his centre. Grant then 
attacked with his main body, and after a hard struggle the 
Confederates were driven down the heights. The loss on 
each side was about five thousand. The victory of Chatta- 
nooga saved Knoxville. Sherman's troops, though wearied by 
the battle and their previous marches, were at once hurried off 
to relieve Burnside. Longstreet, on hearing of Bragg's defeat, 
made one desperate and unsuccessful assault on Knoxville, 
and then withdrew into Virginia. 



XXV.] NAVAL OPERATIONS. 373 

23. The Conscription and the Riots of New York. — It 
was seen early in the war that the voluntary enthusiasm of the 
South was unequal to the support of so great a struggle. In 
tlie summer of 1862 an Act was passed by the Southern 
Government, making all male citizens between eighteen and 
thirty five years of age liable for military service, with a special 
exemption in favour of certain professions. As the war went 
on, fresh Acts were passed, extending the age, till at length no 
male between eighteen and fifty-three was exempt. The 
North, rich and able to offer liberal bounties, did not feel the 
need for compulsion so soon, but it came at last. In Febru- 
ary 1864 an Act was passed, making all male citizens between 
e ghteen and forty-five liable for military duty. Payment or 
provision of a substitute was allowed in place of personal 
Service. These measures were differently received in the 
North and in the South. The Southerners were, as I have 
said, thoroughly united, and fired by an enthusiastic passion 
for their cause. Moreover they felt that they were fighting to 
ward off invasion from their own homes. The population 
of the North had not the same direct and personal interest in 
the war. Accordingly the ballot for conscripts at New 
York led to disturbances, which seemed at one time likely to 
endanger the city. Troops however were brought up, the 
municipality raised a fund to enable poor persons to pay for 
substitutes, and tranquillity was restored. It is remarkable, 
as showing how little sympathy New York had with the 
anti-slavery feeling of New England, that the negroes were 
made the special object of attack by the rioters. 

24. Naval Operations.^ All this while the blockade of the 
Southern ports was successfully maintained. By this means 
the staple commodity of the South, cotton, was rendered 
worthless. At the same time, fort after fort was taken along 
the Southern coast. The only two affairs of this kind which 
were important enough to need separate notice were the 



374 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

capture of Mobile by the Federals and their unsuccessful 
attempt upon Charleston. The attack on Charleston was 
undertaken rather for political than for military reasons. The 
place had always been the object of peculiar hatred in the 
North, as being the hotbed of secession. From a military 
point of view, any advantage that its capture might give 
was probably equalled by the fact that it kept thirty thousand 
men idle within its defences. On April 7th, 1863, the Federal 
fleet of iron-clads entered the harbour and opened fire upon 
the works, but were utterly unable to stand against the guns 
of the forts. After an engagement lasting forty minutes the 
fleet retreated, and their commander. Admiral Dupont, 
declared that in another half-hour every vessel would have 
been sunk. The Federal force then confined itself to detached 
attacks on Fort Wagner and Fort Sumter. The former was 
evacuated, the latter was bombarded till it was a heap of 
ruins. Nevertheless, the possession of it enabled the defen- 
ders of the place to impede the entrance of the harbour by 
the use of torpedoes and the like. Accordingly an attempt 
was made to dislodge them by an assault, but without success. 
Further south the Federals fared better. In the summer of 
1864 Farragut attacked Mobile. The harbour was strongly 
fortified, and was a frequent resort for blockade-runners. 
With fourteen wooden ships and four iron-clads, Farragut 
forced his way in, destroyed the Confederate fleet in the 
harbour, and reduced the forts. Throughout the war the 
commerce of the Northern States was greatly harassed by 
Confederate cruisers, some of them built in British dock- 
yards. The most noteworthy of these was the Alabama, 
which was launched in July 1862. During the next two years 
she captured sixty-five vessels, till she was at length des- 
troyed by the Federal war-ship Kearsage, near Cherbourg 
harbour. 

25. Grant's Plan of Campaign. — In the spring of 1864 



XXV.] SHERMAN'S INVASION OF SOUTH-WEST. 375 

Grant was appointed commander-in-chief of the whole 
Federal forces, under the title of Lieuten ant-General, a dis- 
tinction never conferred by the Federal Government on any- 
one since Washington. He undertook, and successfully 
carried out, a more definite and continuous policy than had 
hitherto been attempted. Yet, in comparing him with those 
who had gone before him, we must not overlook several 
advantages which he enjoyed. The Southern Confederacy 
was fast becoming exhausted. Every campaign was draining 
it both of men and resources. The North, on the other hand, 
was becoming more united and more alive to the necessity 
of vigorous efforts. Grant too could learn by the failures of 
his predecessors, and he was at the head of armies whom 
those very failures had trained and disciplined. And, suc- 
cessful as Grant was, it must never be forgotten that his 
success was won by a deliberate sacrifice of life on a fearful 
scale, a sacrifice from which perhaps his predecessors would 
have shrunk. Yet, with all these drawbacks, the clearness 
with which Grant saw what were the great leading move- 
ments needful for success, and the dogged courage and un- 
wearied patience with which he strove for those ends, must 
ever give him a high place among great commanders. His 
policy was to abandon all minor movements, to concentrate 
the whole force of the Federal arms on two great lines of 
attack, and to penetrate the Southern States from the south- 
west and from the north. The superior resources of the 
North would, he knew, enable him to wear down the South 
by sheer hard fighting. He would be able to bring fresh 
soldiers into the field when the Southern armies were annihi- 
lated and there were none to fill their place. 

26. Sherman's Invasion of the South-west. — One part of 
this scheme, the invasion of the west, was entrusted to the 
ablest of Grant's subordinates, Sherman, to whose support, 
as Grant ever frankly acknowledged, his earlier successes in 



376 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

the west were in a great measure due. Sherman's first point 
of attack was Atlanta in Georgia, an important centre of rail- 
way communication. It was about a hundred miles from 
Chattanooga, Sherman's point of departure. He set out 
early in May. His line of march lay along a railway which 
kept up his communication with Chattanooga. His army 
numbered nearly a hundred thousand. The Confederate 
force opposed to him, under Johnston, was barely half that 
number. Johnston gradually fell back, impeding Sherman's 
advance and harassing him on every occasion, but avoiding 
a pitched battle. The march was, in Sherman's own language, 
" one gigantic skirmish." Johnston had never stood well 
with the Southern Government, and his present policy met 
with no favour. On the 17th of July the command of the 
Confederate army was transferred to Hood. Whatever may 
be thought of Johnston's policy, it was hardly a well-chosen 
time for such a change. All the mischief that might result 
from Johnston's caution had now been done. His previous 
career showed that his retreat was not the result of weakness 
or indecision, but part of a deliberately arranged plan. To 
make a change now was to suffer all the mischief of such 
a plan and to forego the compensating gain. Hood at once 
adopted a bolder policy, but with no good result. He was 
defeated with heavy loss in a series of engagements round 
Atlanta. Sherman then marched to the west of Atlanta, 
and by threatening Hood's communication with the rear, 
forced him to evacuate the place. On the 2nd of September 
Sherman telegraphed to "Washington " Atlanta is ours." His 
total loss in the campaign which ended thus was about thirty 
thousand, that of the enemy some ten thousand more. Merci- 
less severity in his dealings with the inhabitants of the South, 
when the operations of war seemed to need it, was Sherman's 
fixed and deliberate policy. He was not wantonly, or even 
fev engefuUy, cruel ; but he went on the principle that the South 



XXV.] SHERMAN'S INVASION OF SOUTH-WEST. 377 

could be ciaished only by bringing home to the inhabitants a 
full sense of the miseries of war, and that no feeling of pity 
for them ought to stand in the way of any arrangement which 
could bring the war to a speedy end. In his own words, 
" war is cruelty, and you cannot refine it." In this spirit he 
ordered that all the inhabitants, without rtgird for sex, age, 
or sickness, should quit Atlanta, and he destroyed the buildings 
of the town, sparing only churches and dwelling-houses. The 
capture of Atlanta was but a step towards further ends. To 
penetrate into the heart of the Southern Confederacy was 
Sherman's ultimate aim. With this view he quited Atlanta, 
abandoning his communications with the rear, and determin- 
ing to maintain his army, nearly seventy thousand men, on 
the resources of the country and such supplies as he could 
carry with him. Hood, instead of opposing him, resolved to 
invade Tennessee ; thus two invasions were going on simul- 
taneously. The object of Sherman's march was the city of 
Savannah. On the 14th of November he started, and from 
that time till he arrived at the sea no clear tidings of his 
army reached the North. On the 20th of December a 
division of the army appeared before Fort McAlister, some 
fourteen miles from Savannah. The Federals had made 
more than one unsuccessful attack on this place from the sea, 
but it now fell at the first assault. General Hardee, who 
was in command of the Confederate forces at Savannah, 
found that it would be impossible to hold the place, and 
evacuated it. Sherman sent a message to the President 
announcing that he presented him, as a Christmas gift, with 
the city of Savannah. He had marched more than three 
hundred miles in thirty-six days, with a loss of little more 
than five hundred men. His own report stated that he had 
done damage to the amount of a hundred millions of dollars, 
of which eighty millions was sheer waste and destruction. The 
march of an invading army, subsisting on the country, must 



37S THE WAR OF SECESSION: [chap. 

always be accompanied by great suffering to the inhabitants, 
and little was done by Sherman or his officers to lessen it. 
The absence of an enemy relaxed discipline, and the army 
became little better than a horde of savage plunderers. The 
negroes rushed in troops to the army and followed their 
march, hailing them as deliverers ; but, as might be supposed, 
they could find no means of support, and perished in numbers 
from misery and hunger. 

27. Hood's Defeat. — Widely different in its result from 
Sherman's invasion had been Hood's sortie into Tennessee. 
The army opposed to his was commanded by Thomas, and 
was stationed at Nashville. A detachment was sent forward 
under General Schofield to harass Hood and check his 
advance. Having done this successfully, Schofield fell back 
and joined the main body. On December the 15th the two 
armies engaged in front of Nashville, and after two days' 
fighting the Confederates fled in confusion, hotly pursued. 
Their sufferings in the retreat were intensified by all the 
horrors of mid-winter. For the first time in the history of 
the war, a Southern army was not only repulsed, but utterly 
shattered and routed. 

28. The Battles in the Wilderness. — In the menntime 
Grant had been himself endeavouring to carry out the other 
half of his scheme in Virginia. His object was twofold : firstly, 
to destroy or cripple Lee's army ; secondly, to capture Rich- 
mond. Accordingly he began by a direct advance on Rich- 
mond, intending if that failed to proceed against it on the 
south-east side, as McClellan had done two years before. The 
Federal army advanced in three bodies. The main body 
marched through the country in which the battle of Chan- 
cellorsville had been fought. The right wing, under Sigel, 
marched up the Shenandoah valley; the left, under Butler, near 
the coast between the Rapahannock and the James river. The 
country through which the main body marched was called 



XXV.] THE BATTLES IN THE WILDERNESS. 379 

the Wilderness. It consisted of tobacco-fields, thrown out of 
cultivation, covered with low, scrubby wood, and cut across 
by deep ravines. Most of the fighting throughout the war 
had been carried on in woody and broken country. This 
gave the battles a peculiar character. No one, in reading an 
account of the war, can fail to notice that the great battles 
often took several days, almost always more than one. From 
the nature of the ground, it was usually impossible for the 
general to carry out movements with great masses of troops, 
such as in the great battles of Europe have often decided the 
matter almost at a single blow. Moreover, in a country 
where a foe could always approach unseen, troops were liable 
to be taken suddenly in flank. This led to the general 
use of roughly and hastily-constructed defences. Thus 
a great battle was often a series of petty sieges, the 
troops defending themselves in one post after another 
by felling trees and hastily throwing up earthworks. All 
these peculiarities were seen in the highest degree in 
the battles of the Wilderness. The centre of the Federal 
army, under Meade, numbered one hundred and forty 
thousand. Against this Lee could only bring sixty thousand 
men. Outnumbered as he was, Lee at first acted on the 
offensive. In the first engagement he lost ten thousand men, 
the enemy double that number. After this, Lee contented 
himself with holding his ground against the attacks of the 
Federals. In all the history of war, it would be hard to find 
an instance of an army making so brilliant and so successful 
a resistance against an enemy far superior both in numbers 
and in resources. Again and again did Grant hurl his forces 
upon Lee's line, and each time he was forced by a flank 
movement to turn the position which he had failed to carry. 
After a month of this continuous carnage, Grant found him- 
self on the south-east side of Richmond, with the Confederate 
line still unbroken and his own force lessened by sixty 



38o THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

thousand men. His position was one which McClellan had 
reached with comparatively trifling loss. All that he had to 
compensate him was the enemy's loss of eighteen thousand 
men, a loss in reality more serious than his own, since they 
could not be replaced. The South too had lost the services 
of Stuart and Longstreet. The former had fallen in some 
detached cavalry operations to the north-east of the main 
army. Longstreet, by a strange chance, had nearly met the 
same fate as Jackson. He and his staff as they rode along 
in front of his line were mistaken for Federal cavalry. The 
men fired, and Longstreet fell, seriouslj', though nut, as was 
at first thought, mortally, wounded. In the meantime Butler's 
force had been checked by Beauregard. That general had 
formed the daring scheme of withdrawing fifteen thousand 
men from Lee's army, falling with his force thus strengthened 
on Butler, and then, if successful, attacking Grant's left 
flank. Jefferson Davis however refused to sanction this 
scheme, fearing that it would endanger Lee's army. 

29. Early's Sortie. — The operations in the Shenandoah 
valley were important enough to need a separate notice. 
Early in May Sigel was utterly routed by Breckenridge. 
Sigel resigned his command and was succeeded by Hunter. 
He obtained some trifling success, but was afterwards out- 
manoeuvred and forced to retreat into Western Virginia. Lee 
then, in hopes of creating a diversion, detached Early with 
twelve thousand men to threaten Washington. Hunter threw 
himself across Early's line of march, and, although defeated, 
created a hindrance and gave time for the defence of Wash- 
ington. When the rumour came thither that Early had 
crossed the Potomac, the inhabitants at first mocked at all 
idea of danger. Extravagant terror soon took the place of 
over-confidence, and it was reported that Lee with sixty 
thousand men was marching on the capital. The danger 
was undoubtedly real, but troops arrived in time to make an 



XXV.] RE-ELECTION OF LINCOLN. 381 

attack impossible. Early, who had advanced within a few 
miles of Washington, withdrew across the Potomac. In his 
march through Maryland he ravaged the country mercilessly, 
giving the inhabitants their first insight into the actual horrors 
of war. In the beginning of August, Grant sent Sheridan, 
one of the ablest of his subordinates, with forty-five thousand 
men to act against Early. For some weeks nothing was 
done beyond skirmishing. On September the 19th Sheridan 
attacked Early at Opiquan Creek and defeated him, with a 
loss of about five thousand men on each side. Sheridan 
then, obeying Grant's orders, utterly laid waste the valley. 
The alleged defence for this was the necessity of making it 
impossible for a Southern army to advance by that route 
against Washington. On the 19th of October Early surprised 
the Federal army at Cedar Creek. His attack was at first 
completely successful, but his forces became scattered and 
demoralized in pursuit, and betook themselves to plundering 
the enemy's camp and feasting. Sheridan rallied his troops, 
fell upon Early, and utterly defeated him, capturing all his 
stores and a large portion of his artillery. The actual loss 
of men was about equal, but the Confederates were driven 
out of the Shenandoah valley. Thus ended the last attempt 
of the South to carry the war into the enemy's country. 

30. Re-election of Lincoln. — In the autumn of 1864 the 
presidential election took place. It seemed at first as if the 
parties would again be subdivided. A section of the Repub- 
licans were inclined to think that Lincoln would not show 
enough vigour in his dealings with the South. The more 
thoroughgoing of them still distrusted his views about sla- 
very. They proposed to bring forward General Fremont, 
the Republican candidate for the Presidency in 1856. 
Early in the war he had held command in the west, and 
had incurred the displeasure of the Federal Government 
by his summary and, as it was thought, unconstitutional 



382 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

dealings with slavery. The Democrats too were divided 
into War Democrats and Peace Democrats. The repre- 
sentative of the former was General McClellan. The 
latter supported Governor Seymour of New York. The 
main difference between the two parties was, that the War 
Democrats, although opposed to abolition and in favour of 
State rights, refused to listen to anything like recognition of 
Southern independence. At last the extreme wing of each 
party withdrew, and the contest lay between Lincoln and 
McClellan. The latter laboured under many disadvantages. 
His military career, though respectable, had not been brilliant, 
and was now utterly eclipsed by Grant's successes. The 
time too was a bad one for putting forward the established 
doctrine of the Democrats, that of State rights. Moreover, 
as Lincoln himself put it in a homely way, it was not well to 
change horses while crossing a stream. These considerations 
were strong enough to enlist on the Republican side all those 
who were led rather by the special circumstances of the 
time, than by any fixed preference for either party, and 
Lincoln was elected by an enormous majority. 

31. Fall of Richmond. — During the winter of 1864 the 
cause of the South became more and more hopeless. Lee's 
forces were gradually lessened by desertions and sickness, 
while he was straitened for supplies, both by mismanage- 
ment and by scarcity. In the meantime, Sherman was rapidly 
approaching from the South. At the end of January he left 
Savannah and advanced through South Carolina. Columbia, 
the political capital of that state, was evacuated, and Hamp- 
ton, the Southern commander, in his anxiety to destroy the 
stores of cotton there, lest they should fall into the hands of 
the Federals, burnt down a large part of the city. A like 
fate befell Charleston. By the last week in March, Sherman 
had brought his army to the southern frontier of Virginia. 
Lee, it was clear, would, if he remained before Richmond, 



XXV.] SUJiKEA-DER OF THE CONFEDERATES. 383 

be crushed between the two Federal armies. His only hope 
was to join Johnston, who commanded the Confederate 
forces in South Carolina. On the 25th of March a Con- 
federate force under General Gordon attacked the Federal 
lines, in the hope of cutting a way through for the escape of 
the army. At the outset the attempt was successful, and 
Fort St^adman, a strong work on the Federal right, was 
seized. The Federals however rallied, repulsed their 
assailants, and recaptured the fort. On the 29th of March 
Grant resolved to strike a decisive blow. Sheridan, by a 
daring and skilful attack, utterly defeated the Confederate 
right. This was immediately followed by an attack on the 
whole. The Confederate lines were forced, and the defence 
of Richmond became impossible. On Sunday, April 2, the 
news of Lee's defeat was brought to Jefferson Davis while 
he was in church. In a few hours the whole city was seized 
by a panic. As in Columbia and Charleston, the attempt to 
destroy the public property was followed by a fire, by which 
half of the town was destroyed. On the 3rd of April the 
Federal flag floated over the Southern capital. Petei"sburgh 
was evacuated on the same day. 

32. Surrender of the Confederate Armies. — The retreat of 
Lee and the fall of Richmond practically ended the war. 
The South might prolong the struggle, but all hopes of 
success were at an end. Yet men remembered how, after 
Antietam and Gettysburg, Lee's retreating army had turned 
upon its pursuers, and it yet seemed possible that some 
signal triumph might win for the South better terms than she 
could expect by an immediate surrender. But Lee's wearied, 
starving, disheartened, forces, were no longer the same men 
who had conquered at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. 
Through mismanagement, his supplies went astray, and after 
the 5th of April his army had no food but such as it could 
glean from an exhausted country in the face of an ever- 



384 THE WAR OF SECESSION. [chap. 

watchful enemy. The men were glad to feed on the shoots 
of trees, and the mules fell down in the road from weakness. 
Whole bodies of soldiers laid down their arms and sur- 
rendered, til! Lee was left with little more than ten thousand 
men. By April the 9th the energy of Sheridan had barred 
the path of Lee's retreating force. Once more Gordon tried 
to cut a way through, but in vain, and then Lee sent in a flag 
of truce. Grant allowed liberal terms of surrender. The 
Southern soldiers were to become prisoners on parole, and 
were to return to their homes and stay there unmolested as 
long as they refrained from bearing arms. Men and officers 
alike were to retain those horses that had been their private 
property, a condition of no small importance to the Southern 
farmers. Grant and his officers left nothing undone which 
could lessen the bitterness of defeat, or relieve the sufferings 
of the Confederate troops. Lee's parting with his soldiers 
showed that he had won from them a love and confidence 
which no defeat or misfortune could lessen. War-worn men, 
with tears running down their cheeks, pressed round him to 
say farewell, and all personal distress seemed swallowed up 
in sympathy for their commander. Johnston's army soon 
shared the fate of Lee's. On the i8th of April Sherman and 
Johnston met to settle the terms of surrender. Sherman, 
going far beyond his province as a general, granted, not 
merely the personal safety of the Southern army, but the 
restoration of political rights to the South. The Federal 
Government refused to confirm these terms. Johnston then 
offered to surrender on the same conditions that had been 
granted to Lee, and this was accepted. 

33. Death o Lincoln and end of the War. — The few 
remaining ConftJerate forces soon yielded, and the war was 
at an end. Jefferson Davis, after his flight from Richmond, 
sought to establish the Confederate seat of government at 
Danville in North Carolina. The surrender of the Confede- 



XXV.] RECONSTRUCTION OF THE UNION. 385 

rate armies obliged liim to flee. After many adventures and 
hardships he reached Georgia, but was there taken prisoner. 
In the meantime an event had occurred in the North which 
threatened to embitter greatly the feelings of the conquerors. 
On the 14th of April Lincoln was assassinated in the theatre 
at Washington. His murderer was an actor, named John 
Wilkes Booth, a fanatical partisan of the Southern cause 
and of slavery. He was at the head of a conspiracy for 
murdering the President, the Vice-President, the members of 
the cabinet, and General Grant. The assassmation of Lin- 
coln was the only pan of the plot which succeeded. One of 
the conspirators, Powell, broke into the house of Mr. Sewai'd, 
tlie Secretary of State, who was confined in his room by an 
accident, and wounded both him and his son severely, but not 
mortally. Booth was pursued and .shot down, Powell and three 
accomplices were hanged, and four others were imprisoned. 
No Confederate in any high station or official position was 
in anywise implicated in this atrocious and purposeless 
crime. Lincoln was succeeded by the Vice-President, 
Andrew Johnson, a native of South Carolina, who had emi- 
grated when young to Tennessee, and had warmly taken up 
the cause of the North. 

34. Reconstruction of the Union. — Johnson's term of office 
and that of his successor, General Grant, have been taken 
up with the process of reconstructing the Union. That 
process, still incomplete, lies beyond the limits of this history, 
and we cannot do more than glance at its beginning. During 
the autumn of 1865 several of the Southern States annulled 
their ordinances of secession, and abolished slaveiy within 
their own limits. A test oath was framed by Congress to be 
taken by all its members. They were to swear that they had 
never voluntarily borne arms against, or renounced their 
allegiance to, the United States Government. This, as long 
as it remained in force, excluded all who had taken any active 

c c 



386 CONCLUSION. [chap. 

part on behalf of the South, though it might be doubted how 
far it apphed to those who had only yielded compulsory 
military service. In January 1866 a committee of Congress 
was appointed to consider the question of reconstruction. 
From that time the old struggle between North and South 
may be looked on as having taken a new form, and American 
history as having entered on a new epoch. In 1 864 Nevada, 
and in 1867 Nebraska, were admitted to the Union, making 
the number of states thirty-seven. 



CHAPTER XXn. 

CONCLUSION. 

Extension tcnvnrds the west (i) — the Californian gfll(f disrcn'eries (2) — 
commerce, &^c. (3) — diversity of population (4) — reli;^ious sects (5) 
— education, literattire, ^c. (6). 

I, Extension towards the West. — I have already said that 
the history of the United States is, in a great measure, the 
history of the process by which a small body of colonies on 
the Atlantic sea-board have spread towards the west. When 
that process is ended, it is possible that many of the peculiar 
features which distinguish- America from the Old World will 
disappear. Hitherto land has been so abundant that the 
position of a tenant renting from a landlord has been 
almost unknown. But when the time comes that the un- 
occupied districts in the west have all been taken into 
cultivation, land may perhaps come to have the same value 
which it has in the Old World. So too men may be driven 
by want of land into manufactures. Hitherto men in the 
United States have always had before them the possibility of 
bettering themselves by a change of abode. Moreover the 
great demand 'or labour has given them a free choice of 



XXVI. 3 THE CALIFORNIAN GOLD DISCOVERIES. 387 

occupation, and thus led to rapid changes. The ease too 
with which money can be made has led men to concentrate 
their energies on business, and thus the luxuries and refine- 
ments of life have been to a great extent neglected. When 
the power of extension towards the west is at an end, all this 
will chanj^e, and we may reasonably suppose that the United 
States will become far more like the great nations of 
Europe. 

2. The Californian Gold Discoveries. — The most remark- 
able feature in the history of Western America is the 
discovery of gold in California in 1848, and its immediate 
results. Such was the rush of immigrants that in eighteen 
months one hundred thousand people had gone to California. 
All were intent on the one object of gold digging. Labour 
could not be procured ; the necessaries of life commanded 
fabulous prices ; gold alone was plentiful and cheap. Wages 
it is said were at first as high as fifty dollars a day, and 
the rent of a small cellar twelve feet by six was two hundred 
and fifty dollars a month. The city of San Francisco sprang 
up as if by magic ; upwards of twenty houses a day were 
built on an average. As might be supposed, a mob of adven- 
turous gold-hunters from all nations formed but poor 
material for a settled population. In 1S50 California became 
a State, without passing through the intermediate stage of 
being a Territory. But the authorities were utterly unecjual 
to the task of preserving law r.nd order, and San Francisco 
seemed likely to become a mere den of criminals. A private 
body was formed, consisting of the most respectable citizens, 
and called the Vigilance Committee. This body took the 
law into its own hands, and succeeded by summary measures 
in establishing order. In 1856 things again became so bad 
that the citizens were driven to like measures. 

3. Commerce, &c. — The main commerce of America has 
lain, as must always be the case with an imperfectly settled 



3S8 CONCLUSION. [chap. 

country, in the exportation of ra\vpro Juce, corn, rice, cotton, 
and tobacco. But, though the cost of hibour has hitherto 
prevented America from competing successfully in manufac- 
tures with the Old World, in one way it has quickened her 
manufacturing skill. In the art of substituting machinery 
for human labour the Americans have far surpassed the 
people of Europe. The greater part of the inventions for 
saving labour in farming, or in the every-day tasks of life, by 
the use of machinery, come from the United States. We 
may reasonably expect that the skill thus learned will enable 
the Americans, when their market for labour shall be Ijctl.r 
stocked, to equal, or even to surpass, the manufactures of 
Europe. 

4. Diversity of Popu'at'on. — We have already seen how- 
various nations of the Old World have contributed to make 
up the population of the United States. This will always 
have an important inllucnce on their social and political 
condition. The Southern States have been, comparatively 
speaking, free from this influence. Where slavery exists, 
there is little temptation for free labomers to immigrate, and 
thus the white population of the South is mainly descended 
from the original English settlers. But in the North the 
population is largely made up of blood other than English. 
There have always been many Germans in Pennsylvania and 
New York, and the population of the latter State has been 
recruited by a continuous inpouring of Irish. It is difficult 
for a people thus made up to take the same fixed and abiding 
interest in their country as is felt by men whose forefathers 
have for generations lived on the same soil. This, coupled 
with the constant emigration westward, gives a peculiar cha- 
racter to the great cities of the Eastern States. Men look on 
them rather as mere places of business than as fixed and 
lasting abodes handed to them by their fathers and to be 
handed on to tlieir children. 



XXVI.] RELIGIOUS SECTS. 389 

5. Religious Sects. — This unsettled condition, and this 
famihatity with sudden and rapid changes, may have had 
something to do with the origin of various rehgious sects in 
America, holding strange doctrines, and living in peculiar 
fashions. Two of these sects are important enough to 
deserve separate notice. These are the Shakers and the 
Mormons. The sect of Shakers was founded about 1780, 
by Anne Lee, the daughter of a Lancashire blacksmith. 
There are now about three thousand five hundred of them 
in the United States, living in fifty-eight separate commu- 
nities. These communities are not altogether unlike the 
religious houses of the Middle Ages. Their inhabitants are 
unmarried, and live with great temperance and good order, 
altogether shut off from the world. Almost all kinds of 
diversion and enjoyment are forbidden to the Shakers, and 
their time is spent in religious exercises and farming. In 
the latter pursuit they have been remarkably successful. 
The whole brotherhood owns as much as a hundred thousand 
acres of land, and the Shakers are reputed the best farmers 
in America. The sect of Mormons was founded about 1830, 
by Joseph Smith, the son of a farmer in Vermont. He 
professed to have discovered a book called the Book of 
Mormon, revealing a new religion, and telling the history of 
the American continent before its discovery by Europeans. 
The book was really an ill-written imitation of the Bible, 
and those parts which professed to be historical were 
taken from an unpublished novel, written some years before 
by one Spaulding. Smith also professed to have direct com- 
munication with God, and to receive from Him instructions 
as to the conduct of his disciples. The first State in which 
he preached his doctrines was Missouri. There his disciples 
met with much persecution, and were hunted from one place 
to another. Mobs attacked them in defiance of law, and 
Smith was taken prisoner, and narrowly escaped death. In 



390 CONCLUSION. [chap. 

1838 the Mormons fled to Illinois. There they built a 
to*ri called Nauvoo, and became a prosperaus community. 
Disciples flocked to them from various parts of Europe, and 
befurc ten years Nauvoo contained more than ten thousand 
Mormon inhabitants. This prosperity however turned their 
heads, and they soon brought persecution upon themselves. 
In 1843 .Smith professed to have received a revelation per- 
mitting the Mormons to marry as many wives as they 
pleased. In the same year he announced himself as a can- 
didate for the Presidency of the United States. Next year 
the office of a newspaper which had attacked Smith and 
his followers was seized by a Mormon mob, and the printing 
press destrojed. This was the signal for a sort of civil war 
between the Mormons and their neighbours. Smith wag 
taken prisoner, dragged out of gaol by a lawless mob, and 
shot without trial. He was succeeded by Brigham Young, 
a carpenter by trade, and, like Smith, a native of Vermont. 
The troubles of the Mormons soon became so great that 
they resolved to leave Illinois, and to seek a refuge beyond 
the Rocky Mountains. After great hardships they settled in 
an uninhabited spot, by a lake called the Great Salt Lake, 
within the borders of Mexico. Soon after they found that 
the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo had given this territory 
to the United States Government. However in 1850 the 
country which they had occupied was formed into a Territory 
under the name of Utah, and Brigham Young was appointed 
Governor. The industry of the Mormons soon converted an 
unpromising and seemingly barren district into a fertile one, 
and they became a rich and prosperous community. Young's 
arbitrary rule, and the way in which he and his followers 
have set the central Government at defiance, have more than 
once brought the Mormons into conflict with the Federal 
authorities, and it seems likely that serious troubles may yet 
arise. There are many other sects in the States, whose 



XXVI.] EDUCATION, LITERATURE, &-c. 391 

doctrines and manner of life are even stranger than those of 
the Shakers or Mormons, but none of sufficient importance 
to deserve separate notice. 

6. Education, Literature, &c. — We have seen that the 
northern colonies were, from the first, distinguished by the 
wide spread of knowledge among all classes. The United 
States have in that respect kept up the same character^ 
and in that way contrast favourably with most European 
countries. Schooling is cheap and abundant. Books, 
magazines, and newspapers are placed within the reach 
of all by public libraries in the large towns. But though 
knowledge and the habit of reading are widely spread, the 
United States have not been fertile in great writers. There 
is only one department of literature in which America is at 
all on an equality with Europe, namely, history. Prescott's 
histories of the Conquests of Mexico and Peru, and 
Motley's histories of the Rise of the Dutch Republic 
and of the United Netherlands, rank among the best histo- 
rical works of the age. Moreover there are many works on 
the history of states, districts, or'towns in America, compiled 
with considerable care and learning. In fiction, whether 
poetry or prose, America has produced little that is either 
valuable or distinctive. Two novelists however, Cooper and 
Hawthorne, deserve special notice. Cooper, in default of a 
picturesque historical past, has fallen back on the Red 
Indians as a subject for fiction. As Sir Walter Scott in the 
Waverley Novels invested the wild highlanders and the 
border yeomen with a romantic interest, hitherto unfelt in 
them, so Cooper, in an inferior manner, has thrown a gleam 
of romance over the savage life and strange customs of the 
American Indians. Hawthorne too may be looked upon as 
representing a curious and interesting side of American feel- 
ing. The same craving for spiritual excitement, which has 
led lo the formation of so many strange sects, shows itself 



392 CONCLUSION. [chap. 

in Hawthorne's novels and tales, where the romantic interest 
is furnished by partly supernatural incidents, while the 
substance of the story generally deals with the every-day 
country life of New England. 

Conclusion. — I have sought to trace the process by which 
in less than two hundred years, a few scattered settlements 
grew into a great nation. I have endeavoured to show how 
the political inbtitutions which the early settlers carried out 
with them grew and expanded, till they fitted themselves to the 
special wants of states, which differed widely from those which 
had been their original home and birthplace. In this process 
lies the great interest of American history. It is not parti- 
cularly rich in picturesque incidents or in striking characters. 
The real value and importance of American history lies in its 
political side. With no other nation can we so clearly trace 
the political institutions and usages from their very cradle. 
Another source of interest lies in this, that the political his- 
tory of America is a process yet incomplete, a process whose 
further history is of unbounded importance to the future 
welfare of mankind. The future political history of America 
will be the history of a wonderful and gigantic experiment. 
It will show how far institutions which have hitherto flourished 
only in comparatively small communities can fit themselves 
to the wants of a fast nation, whose parts differ widely from 
one another. That the Northern, Southern and Western 
States, with their widely differing interests, ideas, commerce 
and mode of life should continue to form one political whole 
may at first sight seem impossible. Yet this would not be 
more marvellous than what we have already seen in America. 
If any one, a century ago, had speculated on the future of 
America, he would scarcely have thought it possible that the 
New Englander and the Louisiana Frenchman, the Northern 
merchant and the Southern slave-holder, should remain free 
citizens of one republic. More wonderful still would it have 




MAP 

,. SBO'WWiG Ur POUR DECREES OrDEirsnT,IHE DiSTMBimoy 

0, W TH£ 

'OPl LAI ION OP THE UMn-D STATES. 

< (impilt'd from Ihe Keturas of Pnpulation at the Sinlh. Census 
1)F THE tJNITEI) STATES 1870^ 



FRANCIS A.WAtKER. 
NOTE 



t_~ 



XVI.] CONCLISIOM. 393 



seemed that these institutions which grew up in England 
centuries before America was discovered should have sown 
the seeds, both of the American nation as a whole and of 
each of its separate and widely diftering parts. When we 
reflect upon this we may well believe it possible that the in- 
stitutions of America will so expand as to meet the growing 
wants of the nation, and that the political freedom which 
England handed over to her American descendants will 
achieve a greater and more abiding triumph than^it has 
yet won. 



INDEX. 



Abenaquis, the, 131. 

Abolition movement, the ri«e o;', 334. 

Acadia, 129 ; settlement of, 94 ; South- 
ern, conquest of by the English, 
209. 

Acadians, banishment of by the Eng- 
lish government, 209. 

Adams, John. 251 ; sent as an envoy to 
England, 290 ; elected President, 
294 ; d' feated for the Presidency, 
296 ; death of, 317. 

Adams, John Qiiincy, President, 316. 

Alabama, admitted as a State, 325. 

Alabama, the cruiser, 374. 

Albany, conference at, 206. 

Albemarle, Duke of, a proprietor of 
Carolina, 171 ; settlement of, ib. 

Albert de Prado, tiis voyage, 32. 

Alexander, the Indian chief, 115. 

Algiers, war with, 300. 

Alien Law, the, 296. 

Allen, Ethan, takes Ticondoroga, 243 ; 
his capture, 246. 

America, geography of, i ; coast of, 5; 
nations of, 8. 

Aniidas, his voyage, 36. 

Andre, his seizure and death, 272. 

Andros, Sir Edmund, governor of New 
England, 122 ; governor of New 
York, 163. 

Annapolis captured from the French, 

Anniversary of Independence, the fif- 
tieth, 317. 
Antietam, battle of, 366. 
Appalachians, war with South Caro- 



ina, 174. 



of South 



Archdale, John, gover 

Carolina, 173. 
Argall, governor of Virginia. 48. 
Arkansas becomes a state. 325. 
Arlington, Lord, grant of Vuginia to. 



Army, nature of the Ameri'-an in 1753, 
205 : the American, disaffected after 
the War of Independencp, 280 

Arnold, Benedict, 246 ; his treascm, 

Ashburton treaty, 324. 

Assembly, first held in Virginia in 

1618, 48. 
Atlanta, captured by the Federali, 

376. 
Augusta, settlement of, X93. 



Bacon, his rebellion, 56 ; death of, 58. 
Baltimoie, the first Lord, 146; the 

second Lord, 147 ; his dispute with 

Virginia, 52 ; ciiy of, attacked by 

the British, 310. 
Bank, Jackson's contest with, 320. 
Barlow, his voyage, 36. 
Barre, 227- 

Bartram, the naturalist, 223. 
Beauregard, General, 344. 
Bell of Tennessee, a candidate for the 

Presidency, 338. 
Belcher, governor of New England, 

142 ; his dismissal, ib. 
Bellomont, Lord, 127, 166. 
Berkeley, governor of Virginia, 56 ; 

Lord, proprietor of New Jersey, 

179 
Bernard, governor of Massachusetts, 

2.1 2- 

Blockade of the Southern Ports, 345, 

357. 373- 
Bo.stoii, the massacre at, 233 ; riots at. 

235 ; the Port Act, 236 ; evacuated 

by the British, 249. 
Bowdoin, James, governor of Mass.i- 

chusetts, 282. 
Braddock, General, the defeat and 

death, 207. 
Bradford, governor of Plymouth, 65. 



396 



Bradstreet, Simon, sent as a commis- 
sioner to England, loo. 

Bragg, General, invades Kentucky, 
365- 

Brandywine, battle of, 260. 

Breckenridge of Kentucky a candidate 
for the Presidency, 338. 

Brook, Lord, 76, 85. 

Brooklyn, American defeat at, 257. 

Browri, John, 336 : John and Samuel 
banished from Massachusetts, 79. 

Buchanan, President, 336 ; his policy 
towards the South, 341, 343. 

Bull Run, battle of, 351. 

Bunker's Hill, battle of, 244. 

Burgoyne, General, his expedition and 
surrender, 263. 

Burke, Edmund, 230 ; his scheme of 
conciliation. 239. 

Burnet, William, governor of Massa- 
chusetts, 140 ; governor of New 
York, 167. 

Burnside, General, 366. 

Burr, Aaron, 296 ; shoots Hamilton, 
301 ; his plot, 302. 

Butler, General, 358, 



Cabot, Sebastian, his discoveries, 23 ; 

made grand pilot, 33. 
Calhoun, his character, 319 ; his policy, 

327- 
California acquired by the United 

States, 331 ; gold discoveries in, 

Calvert, George, see Baltimore ; Cecil, 
see Baltimore ; Charles, governor of 
Maryland, 154. 

Canada, concition of in 1700, 129 ; 
conquest of, 212 ; attacked by the 
Americans, 245 ; insurrection in, 
32c; 

Canonicus, 65. 

Cap. ijitioi,, ca])ture of, 213 

Carolina, its first sctdement and con- 
stitution, 170; divided into North 
and South, 172 ; disturbances in, 
ib. ; general condition of, 178. 

Caroline, affair of the ship, 323. 

Carteret, Sir George, projirietor of 
New Jersey, 179 ; Philip, iS». 

Castine, Baron, 131. 

Cedar Creek, battle of, 3S1. 

C>'£lar Mountain, battle ol, 364. 



Chancellorsville, battle of, 368. 

Charles I., his dealings with Virginia, 
SI- 

Charles II., his grant of Virginia to 
Lords Culpepper and Arlington, 56 ; 
proclaimed in New England, 108. 

Charleston, defence of against Parker, 
256 ; harbour of, blocked up by the 
Federals, 357 ; unsuccessfully at- 
tacked by the Federals. 374. 

Charters, attack on the New England, 
n8 ; those of the Jerseys threatened, 
183. 

Chatham, see Pitt. 

Chattanooga, battle of, 372. 

Cherokees, war with in South Caro- 
lina, 214. 

Chesapeake, the, and Leopard, aflair 
of. 303 ; ^'id Shatmon, 306. 

Chickahominies, lea^jue with, 47. 

Chickaniauga, battle of, 371. 

Church of England, its position in the 
colonies, 218. 

Churches, meeting of in New Eng- 
land, 100. 

Cincinnati, society of, 281. 

Clarendon, Earl of, a proprietor of 
Carolina, J71. 

Clay, Henry, 321 ; his compromi-^e 
bill in 1832, 320; his omnibus bill, 

Clayborne, 148. 

Clinton, General, his successes in the 
South, 269 

Coddingtoi., of Rhode Island, 89. 

Colonization, motives for English in 
the seventeenth century, 40. 

Columbus, Christopher, his discoveries, 
22. ' 

Commonwealth, its dealings with Vir- 
ginia, 52 ; its dealings with New 
Englanit, 96. 

Conlederatioii, the first articles of, 
253 : finally settled, 278 ; its short- 
coinings, 279 ; New En^land, forma- 
tion of, 95 ; disputes in, 104. 

Confederacy, Southern, formation of, 
342- 

Conscription, result of at New York, 
373- 

Constitution, the Federal, 2S6; put in 
force, 288. 

Congress at New York in 1692, 132. 

Convention troops, treatment of, 2^4. 

Connecticut, settlement of, 83 ; consti- 
tution of, 84; charter of, iii;its 
union with New Haven, 112 ; loses 
its charter, 122. 



INDEX. 



397 



Conway, the English statesman, 727 ; 
the American, intrigues against 
Washington, 268. 

Coc-per, the novelist, 391. 

Copley, the painter, 224. 

Cornbury, Lord, 138, 166, 

Cornwaliis, his surrender, 275. 

Cortez, Hernando, 25. 

Cosby, governor of New York, 167. 

Cotton-gin, the, invented by Eli Whit- 
ney, 314. 

Council, position of in Virginia, 56. 

Court, the supreme, 288. 

Cranfield, Edward, 120. 

Creek War, 307. 

Creeks, alliance with, 193, 

Creole, affair of, 324. 

Crogan, Colonel, defends Fort Ste- 
phenson, 305. 

Cromwell, dealings with New Eng- 
land, lOI. 

Crown Point, taken by Ethan Allen, 
^43- 

Culpepper, Lord, grant of Virginia to, 
56 ; Lord, governor of Virginia, 59. 



Dunmore, Lord, governor of Virginia, 
8461 

Duquesne, Fort, surrendered by Wash- 
ington, 206 ; taken by the English/ 
212. 

Durpee, death of, 323. 

Dutch, their settlements, 95 ; theii 
disputes with New England, 100. 



Early, General, invades Maryland, 

380 
Education, want of in Virginia, 55 ; 

in America, 221. 
Edwards, Jonathan, 223. 
Effingham, Lord, governor of Virginia, 

59- 
Eliot, John, 114 ; his book, 108. 
Emancipation proclaimed by President 

Lincoln, 367. 
Endicott, of Massachusetts, 78. 
Erie, Lake, battle on, 306. 



D. 

Dale, Sir Thomas, governor of Vir- 
ginia, 46. 

D'Aulney, 102. 

Davis, Jetl^erson, elected President of 
the Southern Confederacy, 342 ; 
capture of, 385. 

Dearborn, General, destroys Toronto, 
305- 

De Gourgues, Dominic, 29. 

Delaware, Lord, governor of Virginia, 
4"; ; becomes a separate state, 188. 

Democratic party, formation of, 318. 

D'Estaing, Admiral, 269. 

Dickinson, John, of Pennsylvania, 
245- 

Dieskau, wounded, 210. 

Dinwiddie, governor of Virginia, 
204. 

Doegs, war with, 57. 

Donelson, Fort, captured by the Fede- 
rals, 355. 

Douglas of Illinois, defeated by Lin- 
coln for the Presidency, 338. 

Dred Scott case, the, 335. 

Dudley, Joseph, 122 : his disputes 
with the assembly of Massachusetts, 
127. 

Dummer, Jeremiah, his defence of the 
charter, 139. 



Fair Oaks, battle of, 361. 

Falmouth, Peace of, 137. 

Farragut, Admiral, 358. 

Federal party, formation of, 291 ; its 
defeat in 1800, 295. 

Federalist, the, 289. 

Five Naiions, the, 17, 102, tig ; hos- 
tile to the French, 131 : their deal- 
ings with New York, 163. 

Fillmore, succeeds to the Presidency, 
332- 

Fletcher, Colonel, 126 ; governor of 
New York, 166. 

Florida explored by Spaniards, 28 ; 
French colony in, 29 ; becomes 
a State, 337. 

Floyd, Secretary of War, 343. 

France, Commissioners sent to by Con- 
gress in 1776, 255 ; alliance with the 
United States, 266. 

Franklin, Benjamin, 207, 223 ; exam- 
ined as to the Stamp Act, 230 ; sent 
as commissioner to France, 255, 265. 

Frederica, settlement of, 11)3. 

Fredericksburg, battle of, 366. 

Fremont. General, a candidate for the 
Presidency in 1856, 337 ; proposed 
in 1864, 381. 

French, their attempts to settle in Flo- 
rida, 29 ; their settlements, 94 ; theif 



398 



INDEX. 



dealings with New England, 102 ; 
settlements, character of, 130 ; in- 
vaded the English colonies, 132. 

Frobisher, Martin, his voyages, 33. 

Frontenac, Count, 130, 132. 

Fulton, Robert, 315. 



Gainesville, battle of, 364. 

Gardiner, banished from Massachu- 
setts, 81. 

Garrison, William, the abolitionist, 
335- 

Gates, General, 263, 268. 

Genet, French representative in Amer- 
ica, 293. 

Georgia, settlement of, 189 ; charter of, 
191 ; invasions of by Spaniards, 198 : 
becomes a royal colony, 201 ; invaded 
by Sherman, 376. 

Germans in the Spanish colonies, 30 ; 
in Georgia, 193. 

Germantown, battle of, 261. 

Gettysburg, battle of, 370. 

Ghent, treaty of, 314. 

Gilbert, Sir Humphrey, his voyage 
and death, 35. 

Godfrey, the mathematician, 223. 

Goffe, the regicide, 108. 

Gold discovered in California, 332, 
387- 

Gorges, Sir Ferdinando, 60, 70 ; his 
scheme of government for New 
England, 82 ; becomes proprietor of 
Maine, 90 ; Robert, 70. 

Gorton. 98. 

Grafenried, Baron, 174. 

Grant, General, 354, 356 ; his plan of 
campaign. 375 ; President, 385. 

Great Britain, war with in 1812, 302. 

Greene, General, 274. 

Grenville, Sir Richard, his voyage, 
36 ; George, 226. 

Guadalupe Hidalgo, treaty of, 331. 

Guilford, settlement of, 88 ; battle of, 
274. 



H. 



Hale, J. P., candidate for the Presi- 
dency, 335. 

Halleck, General, 354. 

Hamilton, Alexander, his political 
views, 283, 284 ; writes in the Fed 
eralist, 289 ; his character as a 
statesman, 292 ; his death, 302. 



Harmer, General, defeated by Indi- 
ans, 290. 

Harper's Ferrj', arsenal at, seized by 
the confederates, 349 ; seized by 



nees, 305-; President, 323. 

Hartford, convention at, 319. 

Harvard College, foundation of, 
222. 

Harvey, Governor of Virginia, 52. 

Hawthorn, the novelist, 391. 

Henry VIII., his influence on seaman- 
ship, 33. 

Henry Patrick, 228 ; elected governor 
of Virginia, 251 ; his political i'iews, 
284 ; opposes the Federal constitu- 
tion, iSg. 

Hillsborough, Lord, 226. 

Hispaniola, discovery of, 23. 

Hocking, death of, 93. 

Hood, General, his unsuccessful in- 
vasion of Tennessee, 378. 

Hooker, General, 368. 

Hore, his voyage, 32. 

Houston, President of Texas, 328. 

Howe, Lo'd, and his brothers in 
America, 256. 

Hubbard, his history of the Indian 
wars, 222. 

Hudson, Henry, his discoveries, 95. 

Hull, General, invades Canada, 304. 

Hunter, governor of New York, 
167. 

Hurons, the, 131. 

Hutchinson, Sirs., 79 ; Lieutenant 
governor of Massachusetts, 227 ; his 
letters, 235. 



Independence, the Declaration ct 
251- 

Independents, contest with Presby- 
terians, eg. 

Indian, origin of name, 9. 

Indians, their manners and customs, 
16 ; war with in Virginia, 49, 54 ; 
treatment of by Virginians, ib; 
attempts to chr'stianize, 114 : war 
with in 1790, 290 : troubles with in 
1835, 322. 

Indiana becomes a state, 325. 

Iowa becomes a state, 333. 

Ironclads first used, 353. 

Iroquois, see Five Nations. 



399 



Jackson, Andrew, 307 ; defends Mo- 
bile and New Orleans, 311 ; elected 
President, 318 ; opposes nulification, 
320 ; overthrows the Bank, ib : 
General ' Stonewall,' 352 ; his cam- 
paign in the Shenandoah valley, 
361 ; his death, 368. 

James I., dissolution of the Virginian 
Company by, 50. 

James U., his dealings with New 
England, 122. 

Jay a writer in the Federalist, 289. 

Jefferson, Thomas, 252; his character 
as a statesman, 292 ; elected vice- 
president, ■1^4 ; elected president, 
296 ; his policy as president, 298 ; 
deaih of, 317. 

Jesuit missionaries, 130. 

Jessup, General, his treachery to the 
Indians, 323 

Johnson, Andrew, succeeds Lincoln as 
President, 385. 

Johnston, General Joseph, 351 ; his 
surrender, 384. 

Jones, Captain Paul, 276. 

Juraonville, death of, 2c6. 



Leisler, governor of New York, 133 : 
his rebellion and death, 164. 

Leopard and Chesapeake, affair of. 
303- 

Lexington, battle of, 242. 

Liberties, the Body of, 77. 

Liberty, the sloop, 232, 

Lincoln, General, 270 ; Abraham, his 
character, 338 ; elected President, 
339 ; his inaii ^ural address, 344 ; 
emancipates 1 je slaves, 367 ; re- 
elected Presctnt, 381: muidered, 
385- 

Locke, John, his constitution for Caro- 
lina, 170. 

Logan, James, 223. 

Loudon, Lord, his dispute with New 
York and Massachusetts, 211. 

Loui.-viana, settled by the French, 202 ; 
purchased from the French, 299 ; ad- 
mitted as a territory, 300 ; admitted 
as a state, 3c o. 

Louisburg, capture of. 144. 

Lovelace, Lord, governor of New 
York, 162. 

Loyalists, see Tories. 

Lundy's Lane, baitle of, 311. 

Lygonia, settlement of, 91. 

Lyttelton, governor of South Carolina, 
215. 



Kansas, struggle for, 336. 

Kearsage, the, destroys the Alabama, 

374. 
Kennebec settlement in 1607, 60. 
Kentucky, admitted as a state, 297 ; 

invaded by the Confederates, 365. 
Kieft, governor of New Netherlands, 

157- 
Kirk Duval, captiu-es Quebec, 94. 



Lane, Ralph, 36. 

Lafayette, the marquis of, 265. 

La Salle, 202. 

La Tour, 102. 

Laud, Archbishop, his dealings with 

Massachusetts, 81. 
Laudonniere, his colony, 29. 
Laws, early Virginian, 46. 
Lawson, death of, 174. 
Lee, General, 362 ; invades Maryland 

twice, 366, 369 ; his surrender, 383 ; 

Ann, founder of the Shakers, 389. 



M. 

Macleod, Alexander, trial of, y.j. 

]\Ia-i:con. James, writes in the Federa- 
list, 289. 

Mdiii,, .is settlement and constitution, 
90 ; purchase of by Massachusetts, 
121 ; constituted as a separate state, 

Mainland of America, discovery of, 
23- 

Maiiasscs, the ram, 359. 

Mansfie'd, Lord, his speech about 
Ameri' a, 248. 

Marquette, his discoveries, 202. 

Martin, governor of North Carolina, 
250. 

Maryland, dispute with Virginia, 52 ; 
first settlement of, 146 ; constitution 
of 148 ; dissensions in, 150 : disputes 
with Pennsylvania, 187 ; twice in- 
vaded by the Confederates, 366, 
369 

Massachusetts, first settlement of, 71 ; 
character of the first settlers, 72 ; 
constitution of, 74 ; laws of, 77 ; re- 



400 



INDEX. 



ligious disputes, 78 ; its charter 
threatened, 82 ; its dealings with 
Plymouth, 93 ; loses its charter, 
121 ; disputes between the governor 
and the assembly, 139 ; insurrection 
in 1786, 282 ; Bay, Company of. 

Massacre, the Virginian, 49 ; at Boston, 
233- 

Massasoit, 65. 

Mason, John, 70, 119; death of, 83. 

Mather, Increase, 128 ; Cotton, ib. 

Maverick, Samuel, sent as a com- 
missioner to New England, no. 

Mayflower, voyage of, 63. 

Mayhew, Thomas. 114. 

McDonough, Commodore, victory on 
Lake Champlain, 311. 

McDowell, General, 351. 

McClellan, General, tiis invasion of the 
south, 361 ; defeated for the Presi- 
dency, 382. 

Meade, General, 369. 

Melendez, 29. 

Memphis, taken by the Federals, 
357. 

Merrimac, the, 359. 

Mexicans, the, 8 ; their customs, 14. 

Mexico, conquest of, 24, 30 ; war with. 
329 ; city of, captured. 1S47, 331. 

Miantonomo, death of, 103. 

Michigan becomes a state, 325. 

Mimms, Fort, attack upon, 307. 

Minnesota becomes a state, 337. 

Mississippi becomes a state, 325. 

Mohawks, see Five Nations. 

Mohegans, 103. 

Monitor, the, 359. 

Mononhangela, the, 205 ; battle of, 
208. 

Montcalm, 211 ; death of, 214. 

Monroe, President, 316. 

Monroe doctrine, the, 316. 

Monterey, capture of, 330. 

Montgomery, Richard, 245 ; death of, 
246. 

Montreal, capture of by the Americans, 
246. 

Moore, JTohn, governor of South Caro- 
lina, his war with the Appalachians, 
174- 

Mormons, the, 389. 

Morris, Gouverneur, 2R5. 

Morton, his settlement, 66: banished 
from Massachusetts, 81. 

Motley, the historian, 391. 

Murfeesboro, battle of, 365. 

Muy scans, the, 8. 



N. 



Narragansett.s, 103, 117. 

Nashville, battle of, 378. 

National Republican Party, 321. 

Nauvoo, the Mormon city, 390. 

Navigation Laws, 53. 

Navy, American, in War of Indepen- 
dence, 276 ; in war of 1812, 306 ; in 
war of Secession, 357. 

Nebraska becomes a state, 386. 

Nevada becomes a state, 386. 

New Brunswick, 209. 

New England, name given, 60 : its 
general character, 92 ; after the 
Restoration, 107 : commissioners sent 
to, no; change in ^e character of, 
113 ; the Revolution in, 124. 

Newfoundland, discovery of, 23 ; Lord 
Baltimore's settlement in, 146. 

New Hampshire, its settlement and 
constitution, 120 ; constitution of, 
14s ; forms an independent govern- 
ment, 250. 

New Haven, its setdement and consti- 
tution, 87; united to Connecticut, 112. 

Mew Jersey, .sale ot by l^uke ot York, 
179 ; origin of name, 180; division of. 
181 , condition of in 1700, 1S3 ; is 
united under the crown with a new 

New Netherlands, settlement of, 156 ; 
Eng ish conquest of, 160. 

New < )rleins, defence of by Jackson, 
311 : taken by the Federals, 358. 

New York, recovered by the Dutch, 
162 ; becomes finally an Engl sh 
Possession, ib. ; its constitution after 
the Revolution, 165 ; disputes be- 
tween governor and assembly, 167 ; 
its general condition, i63 ; taken by 
the British, 257. 

Newport, settlement of, 89. 

Newspapers, American, in the eight- 
eenth centurv, 222. 

Nicholls, governor of New York, 162. 

Norfolk, bombardment of, 247 ; navy 
yard at, seized by the confederates, 
349- 

North, and south, differences between, 
67.217: Lord, his American Policy. 
238. 267 : Carolina, abolition of 
Proprietary government in, 177 ; re- 
fuses to accept the Federal consti- 
tution, 289. 

Norton, lohn, sent as a commissioner 
to England, 109. 

Norridgevvock, Jesuit station at, 137. 



INDEX. 



401 



Nunez, Vasco, 27. 
Nullification, 318. 

Nyantics, their war with New En 
land, 104. 



Oglethorpe, General James 190 ; ap- 
pointed governor ol Georgia, 192 ; 
leaves Georgia, 200. 

Ohio, admitted as a territory, 298 ; 
admitted as a State, 298 ; Valley, 
conquest of, 211 ; company, formed, 
203 

Opei-hancanough, 49 ; death of, 54. 

Oregon, disputes about, with Great 
Britain, 331 ; becomes a territory, 

Orkney, Lord, Governor of Virginia, 

59- 
Osceola, 323. 



P. 

Pakenham, General, 3i?» 
Paris, Peace of, 215. 
Parker, Kir Peter, defeated at Charles- 
ton, 256 ; death of, 311. 
Parliament, its relation to the colonies, 

Parris, a New England c'ergyman, 
129. 

Patroons, 157. 

Patterson, William, his draught of a 
Constitution, 206. 

Peace of 1783, 276. 

Peinberton, General, 370. 

Penn, William, 184 ; his grant of land 
from the Crosvn, 185 ; his dealings 
with f.he Indians. 186 ; deprived of 
his proprietorship, 187 

Pennsylvania, its settlement and con- 
stitution, 185 ; disputes with Mary- 
land, 187 ; general state of, 189. 
insurrection in, 290. 

Pequods, war with, 85. 

Perry, Commodore, his victory on 
Lake Erie, 306. 

Peru, conquest of, 27, 30. 

Peruvians, 8 ; their customs, 12. 

Pesacus, 104. 

Philadelphia occupied by the British, 
260 ; convention at, in 17S7, 2S4. 

Philip, the Indian chief, w.ir with, 
lis; death of, 117. 

Phipps, Sir William, 125. 



Pierce. President, 334. 

Pinckney, Thomas, defeated for the 
Presidency, 294. 

Pitt, his American policy, 212, 229, 
248, 267 ; his scheme of conciliation, 
238 ; his death, 268. 

Pitisburg, see Fort Duquesne. 

Pizarro, Francis, 27. 

Piattsburg, battle of, 311. 

Plymouth, l.-inding at, 64 ; state of, in 
early times, 66 ; constitution of, 63 ; 
its dealings with Massachusetts, 93 ; 
united to Massachusetts. 124 : Com- 
pany formed, 64 ; dissolved, 82. 

Pocahontas, 47. 

Polk, J. K., President, 329. 

Polk, General, 354. 

Ponce de Leon, 28. 

Pope, General, 355 ; in Virginia, 
363- 

Port Hudson captured, 271. 

Portsmouth, settlement of, 89. 

Potomac, the army of, 360. 

Powhatan, 47, 49. 

Presbyterians, contest with Independ- 
ents, 99 ; in New England, gg. 

Prescott, Gene al, captured by the 
Americans. 260; the historian. 391. 

President, election, 287; functions, 288. 

Preston, Captain, trial of, 235. 

Prevost, General, invades New York, 
3"- 

Privy Council, its dealings with Mas- 
sachusetts, 81. 

Proctor, General, attacks Fort Steph- 
enson. 306. 

Proprietary colonies, nature of, 90. 

Protective duties, question of, 317. 

Providence, settlement of, 88. 

Puritanism, rise of, 61. 

Putnam, defeat of, at Brooklyn, 257. 



Quakers in New England, 105 ; their 
origin and early histt.iy, 105, 179 
persecution of, in New England, 
108. 

Quebec, foundation of, 94 ; capture of, 
by Kirk, 94 ; unsuccessful attack on, 
135 ; taken by W^lfe, 213 ; siege of, 
in 1775, 2^6. 

Quini])i:ic, settlement of, 87. 

Qi;o V\ a r. n o, writ of, against the 
\iri;inin Company, 51; writ of, 
against the Charter of Massachu- 
setts, S2. 



D D 



4C2 



INDEX. 



R. 



Races, division nf American, 9. 

Raleigh, Sir Walter, his first colony, 
36 ; his second colony, 38. 

Ralle, Sebastian, death of, 1^17. 

Randolph, Edmund, his draught of a 
constitution, 286. 

Ratcliffe banished, 81. 

Representatives, House of, how elect- 
ed. 2S6. 

Republican Party, the first, 1789-1829, 
291 : the second, 1856-1875, 337. 

Restoration, effect of, in New Eng- 
land, 107 ; effect of, in Virginia, 

S'*- ■ . . 

Revolution of 1688 in Virginia, 59 ; in 

New England, 124; in New York, 

164. 
Rhode Island, settlement of, 88 : its 

eaily history and constitution, 89; 

charter of, iii ; loses its charter. 

122 ; refuses to accept the Federal 

constitution, 289. 
Rir.> culture of, in Sout'i Carolina, 

173. 
R ^.. aond, e\ac lated by the conf>;de- 

rates. 383. 
Right of search, disputes about, 302. 
Rittenhouse, the mathematician, 223. 
Rockingham, Lord, 230. 
Rolfe, John, marries Pocahontas, 47. 
Roman Catholics, laws against, in 

Maryland, 155. 
Rosecran^, General, 34. 
Ross, General, 5x0. 



St. Augustine, Spanish settlement, 
175- ; attacked by Oglethorpe, 197. 

St. Clair, General, defeated by Indi- 
ans, 290. 

St. John's, Capture of, by the Ameri- 
cans, 246. 

Salem, disturbance at, 240. 

Salzburgers in Georgia, 193. 

San Francisco, 387. 

Sandys, Sir Kdwin, treasurer of the 
Virginia Company, 48. 

Saratoga, surrender of the Hriti.sh at, 



Savannah, settlement of, 192 ; cap- 
tured by IJritish forces, 270 ; taken 
by the Federals, 377. 

Say and Sele, Lord, 76, Sj- 



Scott, General, 330. 

Scrooby, Independents from, 62. 

Sects, religious, in America, 3S9. 

Schenectady, destruction of, 132. 

Ser'ition Law, the, 2<,6. 

Seminole Indian.s, first war with, 318 ; 
second war with, 323. 

Senators, how elected, 286. 

Seward, Secretary of State, 344 ; at- 
tempted murder, 385. 

Se\ mour, governor of New York, 
propn.sed as a Candidate for the 
Presidency, 382. 

Shaftesbury, Lord, his constitution for 
Carolina, 170. 

Shakers, sect of, 389. 

Shannon and Chesapeake, 306. 

.Shawnee prophet, the, 305. 

Shays, heads an insurrection, 282. 

Shelburne, Lord, his American policy, 
226. 

Sherman, General, 365 ; his invasion 
of the South We.stern States, 375. 

Shiloh, battle of, '350. 

Shirley, governor of Massachusetts, 
143. 

Shute, Colonel, governor of Massachu- 
setts, 139. 

Slave Trade, the, 328. 

Slavery, 220, 326 : disputes about, 
254- 

Smith, John, of Virginia, 43 ; Sir Tho- 
mas, treasurer of the Virginia Com- 
pany, 48 ; Joseph, founder of the 
Mormon sect, 389. 

S^thel, governor of Carolina, 172. 

South, and North, differences between, 
67, 217 ; policy of, 327 ; Carolina, 
trouble with the Indians, 174 ; abo- 
lition of the proprietary government 
in, 176; threatens nullification, 318; 
politics of, 319; secedes from the 
Union, 339. 

S. uthern confederacy, formation of, 
342- 

Spain, character of its American con- 
que-ts, 30 ; English raids on her 
American colonies, 34 ; sends a fleet 
against South Carolina, 176 ; threa- 
tens Georgia, 194 ; war with in 1739, 
1(^6 ; disputes with about Mississippi, 



Stamp Act, 226 : how received i 

Ame'ica, 227 ; ret ealed, 229. 
Stark, General, 263. 
State Constitutions, the various, 255. 
State-rights p,irty, see Democrats. 



INDEX. 



403 



Steamboat, the, introduced into Amer- 
ica by Fulton, 315 

Stephens, Alexander, elected Vice- 
President of the Southern Confed- 
eracy, 342. 

Stephenson, Fort, attack upon, 306. 

Steuben, Baron, 265. 

Stith, his history of Virginia, 222. 

Stone, William, governor of Maryland, 

Stony Point, taken by the Americans, 

270. 
Stuart, the painter, 224 ; General, 361, 

370. 
Stuyvesant, Peter, governor of New 

Netherlands, 100, 157. 
Sumler. Fort, bombarded, 344. 
Susquehannahs, war with, 57 ; hostile 

to Maryland. !■;=;. 
Swedes, their settlement, 160. 

T. 

Tallapoosa, battle of, 309. 

Tarrateens, war with, 118. 

Taxation of the colonies by Parlia- 
ment, 224. 

Taylor, General, in Mexico, 329 ; 
elected President, 332. 

Tecumseh, 305 ; death of, ih. 

Tennessee, admitted as a territory, 
298 ; admitted as a stale, ib. 

Territories, the, of Pennsylvania, 186 ; 
of the United States, how admitted, 
296. 

Texas, revolts from Mexico, 328 ; an- 
nexation of, ib. 

Thames, battle of, 306. 

Theatre, attempt to found at Boston, 
223. 

Thomas, General. 371. 

Ticonderoga, attacked by English in 
1755, 210: taken by Ethan Allen, 243. 

Tippecanoe, battle of, 305. 

Tlascala, 8, 11 ; conquest of, 26. 

Tories, the American, 255. 

Toronto, destruction of. 305. 

Townshend, Charles, 226 ; his Ameri- 
can policy, 231. 

Townships, formation of in New Eng- 
land, 67. 

Trent, affair of, 360. 

Trenton, defeat of the British at, 259. 

Tripoli, war with, 300. 

Tunis, quarrel with the Dey of, 301. 

"^uscaroras, their war with North Caro- 
na, 174. 

President, 323. 



Uncas, 203. 

Utah, the Mormon Territory, 390. 



Van Buren, his cnaracter as a states- 
man, 322 ; his appointment as Am- 
bassador to England, rejected by the 
Senate, 322 ; elected President, ib.; 
defeated for the Presidency, 335- 

Vane, Henry, governor of Massachu- 
setts, 80. 

Vera Cruz, capture of, 330. 

Vermont, admitted as a State, 297. 

Vcrrazzani, his discoveries. 24. 

Vice-President, how elected, 287. 

Vicksburg, unsuccessfully attacked by 
the Federals, 358 ; fall of, 370. 

Virginia, state of, in early times, 46 ; 
first Assembly held in 1618, 48 : dis- 
pute with Maryland, 52 ; condition 
of. in the seventeenth century, 54 ; 
war with the Indians, 54 ; rebellion 
in 1675, 56 : joins the Southern Con- 
federacy, 345 ; Company, forrnation 
of, 42 : chartered. 45 dissolution of, 
50 ; West Virginia holds to the North, 
353- 

W. 

Wadswortn, Captain, 123, 127. 

Waldron. Major, death of. 118. 

Walker. Sir H., expedition against 
Canada, 136. 

Walpole, Sir Robert, his American 
policy, 219, 221;. 

Washington, George, sent to the Ohio 
valley, 204 ; conmiands the Virginia 
forces in 1756, 208 ; appointed Com- 
mander in Chief, 243 ; his difficulties 
as Commander, 261 ; dealings with 
the army after the war, 281 ; elected 
President, 289 ; his political position, 
292 ; retirement of, 293 ; death of, 
2Q4 ; city of, destruction of, by the 
liritish, 309 ; threatened by the Con- 
I'ederates, 350 ; Territory of, 332. 

Wayne, General, 270 ; defeats the 
Indians, 290 

Wealhersford, 307. 

Webster, Daniel, i,2\ ; opposes war 
with England, 332. 

West, the painter, 224. 

West India Islands, inhabitants of, 15. 



INDEX. 



West Indian Company, the Dutch, 156. 
West New Jersey, sold to Quakers, 

181 ; disputes with Duke of Vork, 

182. 
Weston, his colony, 65. 
Whalley, the regicide, 108. 
Wheelwright, minister, at l?oston, 79. 
Whig party, its origin, 321. 
White, his voyage, 38. 
Whitney, Eli, invents the Cotton-gin, 

314- 
Wilderness, the battles in, 378. 
William and Mary, College of, 60 ; 

their charter to Massachusetts, 124 ; 

th'tir government of New England, 

I2fc 

Wi liams, Roger, banished from Mas- 
sachusetts, 79 ; elected President of 
Rhode Island, go. 

Wilmot Proviso, the, 333. 



Winthrop, John, 73 ; the younger, 85, 



Wii 



becomes a state. 



!33- 



Witchcraft, trials for, in New England, 

128. 
Wolfe, General, his attack on Quebec, 

213. 
Wollaston, his settlement, 66. 



Yamassees attack South Carolina, 175. 
Yeardley, gov'ernor of Virginia. 47. 
Vork, Duke of, his proprietary charter^ 

162. 
Yorktown, surrender of the British at, 

275. 
Young, Brigham, 390. 



^«^^^ 



Historical Course for Schools, 

EDITED BV 

Edward A. Freeman, D.C.L. 

i6nio, cloth. 

The object of this series is to put fonh clear and correct views of 
history in simple language, and in the smallest space and cheapest 
form in which it could be done. It is hoped in time to take in short 
histories of all the chief countries of Europe and America, giving 
the results of the latest historical researches in as simple a form as 
may be. All the volumes are prepared under the supervision of 
Mk. Freeman. 

I.— GENERAL SKETCH OF HISTORY. 
Bv Edward A. Freeman 8>«S 

IL— HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 
Bv Edith Thompson $i.oo 

III.— HISTORY OF SCOTLAND. 

By Margaret Macarthtr. %\.aa 

IV.— HISTORY OF ITALY. 
By the Rev. W. Hunt, M.A ?i.oo 

v.— HISTORY OF GERMANY. 

By James Simk §i.oo 

VI.— HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES 

By J. A. DovLE. 
With Maps and revisions, by Francis A. Walker. 

VII— HISTORY OF FRANCE. 

By the Rev. J. R. Green, M.A. . . {In fire/aration.) 

VIII— HISTORY OF GREECE. 
Pv J. Annan Brvce, B.A (hi /■reparation.) 



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